


Zootopia: Reckless Endangerment

by Anguirus1955



Series: Reckless Endangerment Series [2]
Category: Zootopia (2016)
Genre: Action & Romance, F/M, Gen, Zootopia Meets Lethal Weapon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-10
Updated: 2016-09-19
Packaged: 2018-08-14 06:32:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 60,820
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8002069
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anguirus1955/pseuds/Anguirus1955
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nick and Judy are assigned to a security detail for a key witness in a criminal investigation.  Unfortunately, nothing ever goes according to plan for Nick and Judy, especially when dangerous mercenaries are thrown into the mix.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Visitor From Reptaelia

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nick and Judy find themselves being assigned to the security detail of a key witness in a criminal investigation.

Disclaimer: Obviously, I do not Zootopia, although some of the OC's in this work are derivative of characters from an original novel that I am working on, and hope to have published at some point. All right s to Zootopia belong to Disney, because, you know, legal stuff.

Author's note: Also, since it's never established exactly what kind of calendar system they have in the Zootopia universe, I'm going to use the International Fixed Calendar, because in this universe, animals don't share all of the same superstitions and religious beliefs that Humans have, since, you know, humans and other primates never evolved in Zootopia. This story takes place three years after the end of the film. Also, the continent/country of Reptaelia is basically Australia, but with a different name. It's... it's Australia. Also, the usage of the word 'people' in this story does not refer to humans, but instead refers to any sentient animals in general.

Also, I wrote this while listening to the soundtracks for the Lethal Weapon, Die Hard, and Gremlins films, by Michael Kamen (Lethal Weapon and Die Hard) and Jerry Goldsmith (Gremlins). These were all very influential on my writing and the development of the story.

* * *

**Visitor From Reptaelia**

* * *

Date: Monday, May 9th, 2019

Near a boardwalk at the edge of Sygnalios, the capital city of Reptaelia, various sentient reptiles, avians, and mammals went about their business. While almost all mammals had evolved to become sentient at some point thousands of years prior, reptiles and birds had a much narrower selection of sentient species. Snakes, for instance, never evolved to have sentience, and most crocodilians remained unchanged. Tuataras, the last remaining extant species of their genus, had evolved sentience, as did certain types of lizards, with the most prominent ones being monitor lizards. Chameleons remained un-sentient, as did Gila Monsters and skinks. Gecko's had evolved to become sentient, and so did most iguana species. Most terrapins were also sentient.

While some continents, such as Pangeosia, the home of Zootopia, and Eurasia had varying populations of mostly mammals with some reptiles and birds, Reptaelia was mostly home to reptiles, with mammals being in the minority, despite having more sentient species than reptiles and birds. Insects and arachnids remained un-sentient, because something had to remain constant in the universe. Also unlike most other places on Earth, Reptaelia was home to large venomous spiders that liked to hide in people's toilets. For that alone, Reptaelia was often considered the most terrifying place to live on the planet by outsiders, and the continent's residents agreed.

Of course, unlike other locations of civilization, Reptaelia was also filled with nonsentient animals, such as Salt Water Crocodiles and various pythons, that enjoyed eating anyone dumb enough to enter a watering hole without performing a basic safety check. In most civilized places, the only nonsentient organisms were insects, arachnids, and fish. Indeed, in Reptaelia, everything was capable of killing you, and that included the sentient and civilized locals.

This evening, in fact, one such local was very close to having that happen to them. Near the start of the boardwalk, overlooking the beach, a white-throated monitor named Lawrence Albigul kept a clawed hand to his snout as he glanced around the corner of a shack and watched two dingoes and three large monitor lizards, Komodo immigrants no doubt, hold a frightened rabbit against a fence.

The dingoes were wearing leather jackets, while two of the Komodo dragons were wearing large dusters, and the third, and largest dragon, was wearing a black suit and tie. His tongue flicked about in the air near the rabbit's face before retreating into his mouth as he somehow managed a simultaneous smile and scowl at the brown-furred rabbit he was holding up against the fence.

"Now," the largest of the dragons asked, "Where is my money, Flannigan?" "I, I told you, I'll h-have it b-by Wednesday. Th-that was the deal!" Flannigan replied. "Tch, tch, tch. _Last_ Wednesday, Flannigan. _Last_ Wednesday. I've given you four extra days to give me my money, without interest, I might add." "P-Please, Komo, I just need a little more time!" Flannigan begged. "You should have said that last Wednesday, Flanny. Instead, you run around half the continent, leading us on a wild chase, and you make us think that you're trying to leave or something without saying goodbye," Komo stated.

"I-I was just trying to get more money for you," Flannigan lied. He had, indeed, been trying to get out of the country, but nearly every place that he ran to either had a waiting list or had no available transports at the time that he had arrived, and Komo Domo had been hot on his trail after he had failed to show up at the designated meeting place the previous week. "I gave money to you to borrow, and I have given you at least three extensions on the deadline, yet I see no money. Flannigan, you're a terrible liar," Komo said.

"P-Please, just one more chance!" Flannigan begged, sweat pouring down his fur and tears streaming down his eyes. Komo closed his eyes and appeared to enter a state of deep thought for a minute, before he opened them and stared into Flannigan's eyes with a cold and merciless gaze. "How about... no," Komo said with a nasty grin as he curled his lips to reveal his teeth. Flannigan gasped as Komo slowly moved his mouth forward, opening his jaws to let the rabbit see the rows upon rows of sharp teeth heading towards him.

"Please, Komo! Please, no!" Flannigan begged. "Too late," one of the dingoes said with a wicked grin. The other dingo, a female, chuckled. "Please, somebody help! Somebody, please he-aacck!" Flannigan cried as Komo's mouth bit down on his neck. Flannigan gasped as Komo held his jaws on tight a for a full sixty seconds before he gently removed his mouth and took away only a small amount of flesh.

"Flannigan, do you know that we Komodo Dragons are venomous? I'll bet you didn't know that, did you? Not many people do. Most people like to assume that we simply have poor hygiene, but the fact is that we are indeed venomous," Komo said with a grin as he let go of the rabbit and let him fall down and slump against the fence. Flannigan looked up at Komo before touching his neck with his right paw, lifting it away to reveal the blood. "H-How... v-venomous?" Flannigan asked him fearfully. "Not as much as a wild viper, but enough to incapacitate you and kill you if left untreated. At the very least, with your small size, you'll soon begin experiencing paralysis. And with how much I just gave you, it'll start taking effect _very soon_ ," Komo said with a smile.

"You won't feel much, at first," Komo grinned. "At... first?" Flannigan asked. "Oh yes. We aren't going to wait for my venom to work its way through your _entire_ body before we finish you, so I'll give you an option. Do you want to bite the bullet or wait for us to eat you?" Komo asked. Over by the shack, Lawrence's eyes widened. Consumption of sentient prey by sentient predators was considered to be a barbaric and heinous crime in every part of the world, especially if the prey was consumed while still conscious or even remotely alive at all.

"Now, come on, Flanny. It isn't that hard to choose. Instant death or painful suffering?" Komo asked with a chuckle. "P-Please, isn't there another way?" Flannigan asked him. "No," Komo said sternly before he pulled a small derringer out of his pocket and handed it to Flannigan.

"Here," Komo said before setting it down in front of the rabbit. "Go on. Take it," Komo said as Flannigan struggled to move his arms and grabbed the small pistol. Flannigan tried to raise the gun, but his arms soon fell limp. "I-I can't! Please, I can't lift it!" Flannigan cried. "Aw, hear that? He can't bite the bullet," Komo said as he narrowed his eyes at Flannigan.

"What a shame," the male dingo said with a smile. "Well, fellas, time to eat," Komo said. The other two dragons walked over and knelt down in front of the rabbit, opening their mouths as Komo picked up Flannigan and began eating first. Soon, Flannigan's cries of horror pierced the night sky, and Lawrence Albigul had to will himself to stay in place lest he alert the feasting monitors to his presence. He glanced over at the dock and then to back of the fence behind him before he saw a small hole, just large enough for him to crawl through. He glanced back over at the grisly murder scene, Flannigan's cries having stopped.

Lawrence gulped and lunged for the hole, grunting in pain as part of the fence scraped his arms while he clawed his way to the other side. He got up and began running on all fours through the underbrush, not bothering to look back and see if anyone had noticed him. Unfortunately, the two dingoes had seen him.

"Uh, boss," Zack Bandit, the male dingo, said with a raised paw. "What?" Komo asked as he took a bite out of Flannigan's left leg, holding it in one clawed hand. His subordinates were finishing off the rest of the rabbit's carcass. "I think we may have been seen by an interloper," Zack said. "Pred or prey?" Komo asked the dingo. "Reptile, I think," Bandit replied. "All reptiles are predators of sorts," Komo said. "I think it was a lizard, maybe a monitor of some kind," Bandit said.

"Follow them, and find out how much they saw. Keep them quiet," Komo said. "Of course," Bandit said with a grin. "Let's go, Maulia," Bandit said to the female dingo. "I love the thrill of the hunt," Maulia Barbaros said. "Me too," Bandit agreed.

* * *

Date: Monday, May 23rd, 2019 

In Savanna Central, a police cruiser sat parked near a restaurant. Inside the cruiser, a gray female rabbit scanned the streets, watching for any lawbreakers. Sitting next to her, a male red fox leaned back in his seat with a pair of shades over his eyes. "Hey, Carrots," he said. The rabbit made no reply. "Carrots?" he asked again. Still no reply.

"Are you still mad at me?" he asked her. The rabbit briefly turned her head to glare at him before returning her attention to the empty street. "Look, I said I was sorry," the fox, one Nicholas Piberius Wilde, said earnestly. "I really am," he said. "Uh huh," his partner, one Judy Hopps, said with seeming uninterest. "Carrots... Judy, please. I didn't think that Bogo would get so upset over a harmless little prank like that," Nick said. Last Friday, he had placed a whoopee cushion on Chief Bogo's chair as a prank. As a result, after Bogo found out who did it, he and Judy had been assigned parking duty for a full week.

"I thought you would have known better after three years of working with him," Judy said. "Come on, it's not like that was the first time anyone had placed a whoopee cushion on his office chair," Nick said. "Nick, it isn't so much that you did that, as it was the day you did it. Last Friday was the anniversary of the day his first wife died. If you'd done it a day or two earlier, maybe he wouldn't have reacted quite so harshly," Judy replied while turning to look at her partner.

"Sorry. I didn't know," Nick said. "You didn't know? How could you not know?" Judy asked him. "Um... quite easily. I don't exactly go around asking people about their married life, Carrots. Hell, I didn't even _know_ that he was married until his wife brought their son into the department to see him a few weeks back. Come on, how am I supposed to know that he was married twice!?" Nick asked her.

"Well... you could always ask," Judy suggested. "Ask? Carrots, I don't think that Bogo will willingly divulge information about his marriage to someone just because they ask him, especially not an officer who is frequently on his shit list," Nick replied. "You aren't on his crap list," Judy said. "Yes, I am, Carrots," Nick retorted.

"No, you aren't," Jud insisted. "Well, if you're so sure, why don't you go ask Chief Bogo if I'm not on the list?" Nick asked her. Judy narrowed her eyes at him. "Okay, maybe we can ask Clawhauser. He seems to know pretty much everything about everyone working in the station," Nick said.

"He didn't know that Lisker was in charge of a ring of vigilante cops until the day they were exposed," Judy said. "Oh yeah, I remember that," Nick said with a frown. "Four cops dead, two arrested, and one in a hospital before it was all over," he said bitterly.

"Yeah," Judy said, remembering how many of their fellow officers had treated Nick after he'd been framed by Lisker's group for the assault of Officer Furrero and the murder of Sergeant Hooper. "Yeah, and then I was promoted to Chief overnight and given the biggest bonus that you ever did see," Nick added sarcastically. "Of course, which is why you still take orders from Bogo," Judy said with a smirk.

"So, want some music?" Nick asked as he reached to turn on the radio. "Sure, but use your phone. I'd rather not get written up for not hearing anything on our channel," Judy requested. Nick nodded his head and plugged his phone into the speaker system. "Aaaaannnd... here's one I haven't heard in a while," Nick said before pressing play.

" _Hot town, summer in the city! Back of my neck getting dirt and gritty,_ " sang a male voice. Judy's ears rose. "Nick... what is this?" She asked him. " _Been down, isn't it a pity? Doesn't seem to be a shadow in the city!_ " "Music," was Nick's simple reply. "Uh-huh," Judy said as she listened to the song. Truth be told, she was more of a modern pop fan.

" _All around, people looking half dead, walking on the sidewalk, hotter than a match heeaadd!_ " "Um, so, Judy..." Nick began. Judy turned to look at him. "Yes?" she asked him. " _Running night, it's a different world. Go on out and find a girl! Come on, come on and dance all night! Come on, come on it'll be all right._ " "Would you... like to, maybe, go to that new... Chinese place that opened up two months ago in Tundra Town?" Nick asked her with only the slightest hint of nervousness in his voice.

"Um... sure," Judy replied. "Cool," Nick said, slightly nervous. " _Cool down, meeting in the city, dressin' so fine and lookin' so pretty! Cool cat lookin' for a kitty! Gonna look in every corner of the city!_ " "Oh, are you paying?" Judy asked him. "Um, of course," Nick replied.

" _This is dispatch. We have a report of suspicious activity and or persons near Central Station. Requesting available units to investigate, over,_ " Clawhauser said over the radio. "Roger, this is Unit Seven-Alpha-Eight-Nine, heading there now to investigate," Nick said as he grabbed the radio and responded. "Affirmative, Seven-Alpha-Eight Nine, over."

"Well, let's get going," he said as Judy put started the engine and pulled out of their parking spot to drive the cruiser toward Central Station. "Um, Carrots? You missed the turn on Fourth street," Nick pointed out to her. "Cheese and crackers!" Judy exclaimed. "Oh, Carrots, you really need to learn how to swear properly," Nick said with a smile. "Can it, Nick," Judy said with a grin as she took a left turn and made her way towards Central Station.

**One More Missed Turn and Three Minutes Searching For a Proper Parking Spot Later...**

Judy and Nick walked into the station, looking around at everyone going about their business as usual. "Do you... see any suspicious activity here?" Nick asked Judy as he glanced around the station, looking at the various animals that were talking with one another and just walking around. "No, nothing yet. Let's go the security desk and ask about who placed the call," Judy suggested. "Good idea," Nick said as he scanned the station.

They approached one of the security desks and looked at the old, gray-furred wolf who was sitting behind it and reading a magazine. "Um, hello," Judy said. "Hi," the wolf said, keeping his eyes on his magazine. "Um, we received a report about a suspicious person or activity a little bit ago. Could you tell us who called it in?" Judy asked.

"It was that old goat over there," the wolf said, pointing at an old female goat and her two sheep friends, sitting on a bench, staring frightfully out at the various commuters arriving at the station and wandering the various snack stands. Again, the wolf had kept his eyes on his magazine the whole time. "I'll go speak to her," Judy said as she walked towards the goat and sheep.

"So, anything that you've seen yourself?" Nick asked the wolf. "I caught some kids smoking grass over by the bathrooms, but that's not really suspicious," the wolf said. Nick raised an eyebrow. "I also caught a jaguar who'd flashed a giraffe earlier, but aside from that, nothing unusual or suspicious has happened today," the wolf said as he flipped a page in his magazine.

Nick took a closer look at the magazine that the older male was reading. "Hey, is that PlayMale?" Nick asked him. "Sure is," the wolf replied with a grin. Nick glanced over at Judy before returning his attention to the wolf. "So, which month, and who's the centerfold?" Nick asked him. "April, and look for yourself," the wolf said as he flipped the magazine around, keeping a digit on the page he'd been reading while showing Nick that month's naked female, who was a very beautiful snow leopard.

"Well, hot damn," Nick said under his breath. "Yep," the wolf said before turning the magazine around and resuming his reading. "Quite a pose she had, eh?" the wolf asked him. "Oh... _definitely_ ," Nick replied, his pants beginning to feel tight. "Um, I'm gonna... go over there," Nick said as he walked towards Judy, who was talking to the goat and her friends.

"And I could see his beady eyes as he stalked around, no doubt looking for something to steal. Dingoes; they're as bad as foxes," the female goat said. "Uh-huh," Judy said flatly, keeping her distaste for the goat's bigotry in check. "I thought this place was supposed to be safe, but if they let one of them 'down under' folk run around in here, we're gonna have trouble, just you watch," the old goat said. "You said it, Betty," one of the sheep said.

"Anything else you noticed about him?" Judy asked. "Um... no, not really," the old goat replied thoughtfully. "Well, thank you for your time. We'll be sure to keep a look out," Judy said as she looked down at her notepad. Nick leaned over her shoulder and looked down at it in surprise. At the top of the page were some notes, but the rest of the paper was filled with a doodle of a snack machine having a battle with another snack machine, with rabbit ears coming out of both machine's top surfaces.

Impressive, Nick thought to himself. Judy grabbed him by a cuff and led him away from the goat and sheep. "So, the suspicious person is a living snack machine?" he asked her. "No, he's a dingo," Judy said. "A dingo?" Nick asked. "Yeah," Judy replied as they walked near a restroom.

"Huh. You know, I've seen a lot of different species living here in Zootopia, but I don't think I've ever met a dingo in person," Nick said. "Really?" Judy asked him. "Really. I've met coyotes and wombats and even a Komodo Dragon, but never a dingo," Nick said as they walked past a restroom.

The duo spent the next thirty minutes checking out the station before leaving, having found no sign of a dingo or anyone else of interest, aside from an intoxicated hamster who had been trying to use a soda cup as a toilet. After re-entering the cruiser and buckling their seat-belts, Nick and Judy reported that they were heading back to the station. They had at least another hour or so left in their shift, which would give them enough time to finish their paperwork and daily reports.

* * *

 

** Zootopia Police Department, Precinct One... **

After arriving at the station, Judy and Nick waved over at Clawhauser. "Hey guys, you're just in time. Bogo was about to have me call you back to the station," the overweight cheetah said to them. "What did we do this time?" Nick asked him, causing Judy to elbow him. "I mean, what did I do this time?" Nick asked. Judy rolled her eyes.

"Actually, he wouldn't really say, just that he wants the two of you to meet him over at his office. Whittaker and Chaney got called in too," Clawhauser said. "Okay, that's new," Nick said as he and Judy made their way into the rest of the station, heading for Bogo's office on the next floor up. After entering the office, the duo saw Whittaker, a seasoned tiger, and Chaney, a wolf.

"Hopps, Wilde; I was just about to call for you. Have a seat," Bogo said. "Sir, whatever happened, it wasn't my fault," Nick said. "Wilde, you aren't in trouble... yet. Now, please pay attention. For the next two weeks, I'm having the four of you watch over a person of interest in alternating shifts," Bogo explained.

"Person of interest?" Judy asked him. "Yes. A reptile of interest, to be more precise. He's a monitor lizard named Lawrence Albigul, and he is a key witness for an investigation into a crime boss in Reptaelia," Bogo said. "Reptaelia? Chief, why isn't this guy being watched by the police over there then?" Nick asked him. "Because the case involves several witnesses, and Mr. Albigul has already made his way to Zootopia, along with his security detail. The four of you will be helping them keep him alive until it is time for him to return to Reptaelia for the trial," Bogo said.

"Okay, but why is he being brought here?" Nick asked. "Because, Officer Wilde, Mr. Albigul is the only witness who isn't dead. All of the other witnesses have either died or gone missing in the past month, and they were all under police custody back in Reptaelia. Mr. Albigul is the only one left, and it was decided that keeping him an ocean away from the animals he's testifying against would be the best option," Bogo explained.

"So, who's he expected to testify against?" Judy asked. "A crime boss named Komo Domo. He's a Komodo Dragon who lives in Reptaelia, and so far authorities haven't been able to touch him thanks to legal loopholes, very good lawyers, and lack of sufficient evidence to actually charge him. Mr. Albigul's witness testimony is therefore of vital importance," Bogo said.

"So, when does he arrive in Zootopia?" Nick asked. "He's already here. Look behind you," Bogo said, motioning for everyone to do so. All four animals turned around and saw a white-throated monitor lizard wearing khaki pants, an A-Shirt and an Acapulco shirt over top over in the corner of the room. He hesitantly raised his right hand and waved. "Hi," he said with a nervous smile.

Sitting around Lawrence Albigul were four animals from the Sygnalian Police and Witness Protection. A sharply dressed dingo, a goana, and two kangaroos. Nick raised a hand and waved at the lizard. "Hi," he said with a nod. "So, eight police officers to protect one animal?" Nick asked out loud.

"Tonight, Whittaker and Chaney will be helping the SPD keep Mr. Albigul safe at a safe-house. The location will be given to you on small slips of paper, and is not to be spoken of outside of this office or the station. Is that understood?" Bogo asked. "SPD?" Nick asked. "The Sygnalian Police Department," the goana said. "Ah," Nick said in understanding.

"Any questions?" Bogo asked. "Yeah, if Whittaker and Chaney are watching this guy tonight, does this mean that Hopps and I will be watching him tomorrow?" Nick asked. "Yes, Wilde, it does," Bogo replied. "Okay. Do we need any special equipment or do we just use our standard gear?" Nick asked. "You'll be carrying some defenses with you in your patrol car, which you will use to patrol a small area around the safe-house. A route will be given to you so that you can drive without straying too far while also remaining inconspicuous," Bogo said.

"Oh. Cool," Nick said. "Anything else?" Bogo asked. Everyone shook their heads. "Good. Dismissed," Bogo said.

* * *

In a hotel room in Sahara Square, two dingoes began unpacking their suitcases. "So, any idea where he might be?" Zack Bandit asked his partner, Maulia Barbaros. "Probably at the ZPD HQ. That's where I would go," she replied. "What about our contacts? Are they all set up for tomorrow?" Bandit asked her. "I called them while you were in the bathroom at Central Station. They'll be ready, but we have to head into the rain forest district to meet them," Maulia explained. "Sounds good," Bandit said before he walked over to the window of the hotel room.

He looked out at the expansive casino and resorts that littered the region. "Maybe we should take a day to ourselves before completing the mission. What do you think, my dear?" Bandit asked Maulia. She smirked before chuckling. "As long as we kill Albigul before the end of next week, we should be okay," she said. Bandit nodded his head in agreement. "Does Komo know we'll be taking that long?" Bandit asked her with a smirk. She returned the smirk. "Who cares?" "Touche," Bandit said before tackling her to the floor. At some point, one of them managed to place a DO NOT DISTURB sign on the front of the hotel room door, preventing anyone from interrupting them.

By evening, both partners were well sated, and they both looked out at the night sky of the Sahara Square. "Just look at that. So much fun to have, and so little time," Bandit said dreamily as he twirled a hunting knife in one of his paws. "Yep," Maulia said as she got off the bed and opened a suitcase, revealing a hidden compartment inside of it. She brought out a disassembled sword and began reassembling it. "And tomorrow is when it really begins."


	2. Planning Planners Plan

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nick and Judy have begun their first day as part of Lawrence Albigul's security detail. Meanwhile, the rest of the mercenaries have arrived in Zootopia.

Disclaimer: Obviously, I do not own Zootopia. Zootopia is the property of Disney.

* * *

**Planning Planners Plan**

* * *

Date: Tuesday, May 24th, 2019 

Judy woke to the sound of knocking at her door. Groaning at the noise, she slowly got up and trudged over to the door, opening it to see Nick, in his uniform, waiting for her. "Nick?" Judy asked him. "Why are you here so early?" "Special assignment, remember? It might be best for us to get to either the station or the safe-house early," Nick replied.

"Right," Judy said groggily before she turned around. She glanced over her shoulder and looked back at Nick. "Are you coming in or staying out there?" she asked him. "Sorry," Nick said as he stepped inside the enlarged closet that Judy dared to call an apartment room. He closed the door behind him as Judy started getting dressed.

"So, do we need to do any investigating on Mr. Domo while we keep an eye on Mr. Albigul, or are we simply supposed to keep an eye on the guy?" Nick asked his partner as she pulled her pants. "Well, I talked to Bogo before we left the station yesterday, and he said that we can ask Albigul's security team for basic information so that we can have a general idea of what's going on," Judy said.

"And by basic, I suppose that means just the bare bones minimum?" Nick asked her. "I don't know," Judy said as she buttoned her uniform shirt and placed her cap on her head. "So, do we still want to go to that place in Tundra Town, or is that put on hold until tomorrow, when Whittaker and Chaney are guarding the lizard?" Nick asked Judy.

"Well, considering that Mr. Albigul is a reptile, and reptiles are cold-blooded, at least according to the research I did last night, taking him to Tundra Town will either make put him in a coma or kill him faster than the crime boss he's testifying against," Judy said. "So... that's a no, I guess," Nick replied with a hint of disappointment in his voice.

Then, Judy's words registered. "Wait, research? You didn't know until last night that reptiles are cold-blooded?" Nick asked her. "Well... we rarely ever deal with reptiles, Nick. And there were no reptiles living in Bunnyburrow while I was growing up, so... I really didn't know much about them other than that they exist and have scales. That was pretty much the extent of my knowledge," Judy admitted.

"What about when we met Dom?" Nick asked her. Dom was a Komodo Dragon who had emigrated to Zootopia nearly seven years prior to Judy joining the ZPD. He owned a restaurant in the Rainforest District called Dom's Bar & Grille. His eatery was also among the few places in Zootopia to serve poultry, since chickens were not sentient creatures.

"Well, it just never occurred to me," Judy said sheepishly as she and Nick made their way out of the apartment. "So, safe house first, or the station?" Nick asked her. "Station. We need to grab our cruiser for ease of transportation," Judy replied. "Right," Nick said. "Can we stop at a coffee shop on the way?" Nick asked her. "If you behave, then maybe we'll stop," Judy said with a smile.

* * *

"So, are they intact?" Bandit asked their contact, a panther named Sal, as he and Maulia inspected several crates. They were inside an underground room connected to a bar. "They survived transport, but it wasn't easy getting them through customs, even with them being disassembled," Sal replied. "But they still made it through?" Maulia asked him.

"See for yourselves," Sal said as he opened a crate and removed several boxes. He placed them on the floor, each box marked with a letter and a number. Using a claw, Sal cut the tape on the boxes and pushed a paw through all of the packing peanuts to remove two plastic bags containing the internal parts of a submachine gun.

The trio spent the next hour unloading the boxes and reassembling several guns and attachments, including a dozen PR-98 submachine guns, two M-46 grenade launchers, several automatic pistols of various makes and models, sound suppressors, rail systems, scopes and laser sights, modular grips, and one custom-made hunting rifle. "This ain't a military rifle," Sal noted with surprise in his voice. Most of the other weapons were military or police grade, so the hunting rifle stood out to him.

"No, it isn't," Maulia said as she looked over the rifle and its custom made wood finish stock and modular rail system, which allowed for various modifications. "It's a hunting rifle," Bandit explained with a grin. "Hunting? What do you hunt with this thing?" Sal asked. "Crocodiles, sharks, dodo birds, and the occasional thylacine," Maulia said. Thylacines, also known as Tasmanian Tigers, were among the very few land dwelling mammals that had not evolved sentience over the past millennia.

"Thyla-what now?" Sal asked them. "Tasmanian Tigers," Bandit explained. "Tigers? Um, I may sound like a bit of a hypocrite, but wouldn't that be a violation of the Common Sentience Protection Law?" Sal asked. "No, because Tasmanian Tigers aren't felines. They're the last surviving members of a carnivore-only predator species, and they never evolved sentience," Bandit explained with a smile. "They're also quite vicious," he added.

"Right," Sal said, nodding his head in understanding. "Um, anyway, I've done the math since you guys have arrived, and I've noticed that the amount of weapons here is a bit large for just the two of you. Do you expect these things to break at some point?" Sal asked them. "Actually, we're making sure that there's enough to go around when the others arrive," Maulia explained to the panther.

"O-Others?" Sal asked them. "That's right. If it were just the two of us, there wouldn't be nearly as many guns, or as much spare ammunition," Maulia said, gesturing to the three unopened crates that contained at least ten times as much ammunition as there were guns.

"Um, just so you know, smuggling this stuff in through customs wasn't cheap. I had to pay a lot of money to a lot of people just to make them look the other way, and I had to pay those same people twice as much money in advance to ensure that they'll look the other way when we send these back to Reptaelia when you're done here," Sal said. "I'm going to need some compensation."

"Fair enough. Now, if I painted this gun to look like a toy, do you think it would shoot confetti?" Bandit asked Sal. Sal blinked in confusion. "Um... what?" he asked the dingo. "You don't like confetti? What about hot oil? Or maybe a stick with a little flag on the end of it," Bandit rambled, confusing the panther. Sal looked to Maulia for some kind of explanation.

"Ignore him. He does this sometimes," Maulia explained as she retrieved a bag of money from her coat. "Here," she said, giving Sal several stacks of tens, twenties, fifties, and hundreds. "Holy... where did you guys get this much dough?" Sal asked. "Ask us again and we'll just kill you and take the guns for ourselves," Maulia replied with an annoyed look on her face.

"Right," Sal said quietly as he began counting the money. "So, are we good?" Bandit asked the panther. "Just-Just hold on. Let me count this," Sal said. He gingerly flipped through the bills, one stack at a time. "Yeah," he said, nodding his head. "You're good to go." "Pleasure doing business with ya," Bandit said, letting his accent come through for a few seconds. Sal paid it no mind as the two dingoes gathered their purchases into their transport cases and left.

* * *

"Let's see," Judy said as she and Nick eyed the new gear they would be using today. "Three sets of Kevlar vests, okay, but why are they all the same size?" Nick asked. "I think they're for Mr. Albigul," Judy said. "Why is there a riot helmet in here? I doubt this will fit on that lizard's head," Nick commented. "Is this stuff standard for witness protection detail?" he then asked rhetorically.

"Well, all things considered, it probably is," Judy said as they put the Kevlar vests on under their uniforms and climbed into the front seats of the squad car. "Okay, do you remember the address to the safe-house?" Nick asked her. "Yes. I have it on a piece of paper right here," Judy replied as she retrieved said paper from her pocket and showed it to him. "All right, lets get going," he said as Judy began driving out of the garage.

An hour later, both officers arrived at the safe-house, carefully checking out the neighborhood before exiting the vehicle. "What a nice, quiet little neighborhood," Nick commented as he saw a few children of different prey species playing down at the far end of the street. "Is this place really a safe house?" Judy asked quietly as they walked up to the front door.

"Hey, was there some kind of procedure we're suppose to play along with?" Nick asked Judy. "Um, yeah," Judy said. "Right, what is it then?" Nick asked her. "We open the door and tell the security detail that we want to ask them a few questions, and then they let us inside for a while until we begin patrolling the neighborhood," Judy said.

"Do they know about the procedure?" Nick asked her. "I think so," Judy replied. "You think so? Great, let's hope they don't kill us in self defense by accident," Nick said as they knocked on the door. A small sliding view port opened up and a set of eyes looked out. "Who is it?" asked a female voice. "We're officers Hopps and Wilde. We'd like to ask you some questions about a... vandalism that occurred recently in this area," Judy said.

"Sure thing," the voice said before sliding the view port shut. Nick and Judy both heard the sounds of locks being unlocked before the door opened and they were allowed inside the safe house. As soon as they were inside, the dingo shut the door behind them. "So, what's on the agenda for today?" Judy asked the female dingo.

"Maybe we should learn everyone's names first," Nick recommended. "Good idea," the dingo officer said. "I'm Lieutenant Elizabeth Matheson. The goanna over there is Sergeant Curtis Spencer, and the two roo's in the kitchen are Officers Dexter McClaren and Randy Potts," Matheson said.

"And the nervous-looking lizard over there? Who's he?" Nick asked humorously. "Nick, that's Mr. Albigul," Judy admonished him. "Carrots, I was joking," Nick explained. "Oh. Sorry," Judy said. "With the introductions out of the way, what else are we doing today?" Nick asked Lieutenant Matheson. "You're going to help us establish a perimeter around the neighborhood. I was also hoping that you could take either McClaren or Potts grocery shopping so that we can maintain our stay inside of this safe house without needing to leave again so soon," Matheson explained.

"Wait, I thought we were protecting the witness, not his security detail," Judy said with some confusion in her voice. "I would go on my own, but I need to stay here to help Spencer finish setting up the house's backup security system," Matheson said. "Besides, I've done some research on the various populations here and kangaroos aren't uncommon in Zootopia, whereas Spencer and I would stick out due to our species not being as widespread. I'd rather not attract too much attention," she explained further.

"That's a pretty good point," Judy said after a few seconds of consideration. "So, grocery shopping? Are there any stores here that you guys are familiar with, or do we need to go to a specialty store?" Nick asked them. "I don't know. Let's find out," Dexter McClaren said as he walked over to the duo and held up a grocery list.

* * *

As Bandit and Maulia slowly made their way through the inconsistently lit underground caverns that various criminals used to navigate through the Rainforest District, a faint noise could be heard, along with a vibration in Maulia's pockets. Reaching into her pocket, Maulia pulled out her satellite phone. "Geez, you still have that thing?" Zack asked her. "Hush, babe," she said as she pressed the receiver button.

"Hello?" she asked. " _Hey, ding dongs, I've arrived in Zootopia,_ " replied a male voice. "Wait, Wilbur?" Maulia asked. " _Of course. Roland and I just got out of the airport. Now, have you met up with our contacts and retrieved our gear yet?_ " Wilbur asked. "We were just heading back to our hotel with the goods," Maulia said as she looked over at the two carts full of cases and ammo boxes.

" _When do you want to meet up and where?_ " Wilbur asked. "How about you guys get to wherever it is that you're staying, and then call me again," Maulia suggested. " _Sounds good. We'll see you later. Out,_ " Wilbur said before hanging up. "So, what's new?" Zack asked her as she put her phone back in her pocket. "Wilbur and Roland have arrived. We'll be meeting up with them later," Maulia said before she resumed pushing her cart.

* * *

Dexter McClaren looked around the aisles of the grocery store, checking his list as he went along. Judy and Nick followed him, keeping their eyes peeled as they walked through the aisles behind him. Nick occasionally caught a few animals staring at him as he walked by, whether it was because he was a fox or because he was a fox who was also a cop, but he tried to ignore them. He still had to deal with people being wary of him because he was a fox, and he knew that sometimes they only showed him respect because of the badge.

Looking over at a produce area, Nick saw several containers of blueberries, and he had to remind himself that he had plenty of those at his new apartment. About a year after being on the force, Nick had managed to save up enough money to buy a new apartment, which was leagues ahead of his old one.

His old apartment was cheap in almost every sense of the word, with poor air conditioning during the summer (requiring him to buy an air conditioner on his own during one particularly humid July) and poor heating during the winter. The water didn't always stay heated, and there were many times that the pipes froze, and not just the ones connected to his room. He did have a decent amount of space in it, but it was still rather small.

Of course, once he'd actually seen Judy's apartment, his own had looked like a palace in comparison. Judy's apartment was nothing more than a glorified closet, with only enough room for a bed, a desk, and a microwave with a small fridge underneath it. Nick knew that Judy made enough money to find another place with more space, but for some reason she kept insisting that her current place was just fine.

When compared to his old apartment, Judy's apartment was certainly in better condition and upkeep, but it still lacked space and other features, such as walls that didn't let the neighbor's arguments carry through, or a bathroom. Judy had to use the shared bathroom on the ground floor, and either the showers at the station or the community shower across the street to keep clean. Nick's old apartment at least had its own bathroom and shower stall, even if it had been a small one.

His current apartment, fortunately, enough space for him, along with two bedrooms, one of which he used for storage (not that he had much to store), a small kitchen with a fridge and a working sink, a bathroom with a working shower, a closet, and proper heating and air conditioning. Nick still had his old air conditioner, but he rarely ever used it now. He'd invited Judy over a few times, and he'd noticed the look of awe on her face when she saw how much more room his apartment had than hers, although she tried her best to keep that hidden.

He and Judy had a lot of fond memories in that apartment now, especially since last year, when they both spent the Winter Solstice Celebration together, and the occasions when Nick had been sick and Judy had stayed over to help him recover. Judy had also stayed with him for a week when her apartment had been fumigated due to a large roach infestation. It was when Judy had returned to her own apartment that Nick began to realize that his feelings for the bunny were far deeper than those of simple friendship.

 _I doubt she feels the same way, though_ , Nick thought to himself as he glanced over at his partner. "Frozen bug burgers?" Dexter asked quietly as he read the next item on the list, causing Nick to snap out of his musings. "Huh?" Nick asked the kangaroo. "Frozen bug burgers. Which aisle or department would that be in? Frozen entrees or frozen meats?" Dexter asked out loud.

Several prey mammals, including a few sheep and rabbits, glanced over in his direction with odd expressions on their faces. "I can check frozen entree's for you," Nick said. "Thanks," Dexter said as Nick walked away. Judy glanced at the various customers eyeing him before returning her attention to Dexter. "So, what else is on the list?" Judy asked him.

"Toilet paper, paper towels, bleach, band aids, bottled water, canned greens, rice..." Dexter read out loud as he and Judy turned a corner at the end of the aisle. "Sounds like you guys came here before getting everything set up," Judy said quietly. "We planned ahead long enough to secure the safe-house and additional help in the form of you guys, but otherwise we didn't have anyone check to see if the place had any supplies left over from previous usage," Dexter replied as he grabbed a box of cereal and looked at it before returning it to the shelf.

"So, in Re-I mean, back home, do mammals outnumber reptiles, or are they the same? I don't know much about other countries," Judy said. "Some places have more mammals than reptiles, some places have more reptiles than mammals, and some places have even numbers. But, do you mean sentient or non-sentient?" Dexter replied. "Um, what do you mean?" Judy asked him as he picked up a few cans of greens and placed them in the shopping cart.

"What I mean is this: Not all animals have achieved sentience or are civilized. Many reptiles, including crocodiles and snakes, are still savage and wild," Dexter explained as he grabbed a few cans of sliced carrots. "Canned carrots? You're better off getting whole ones and cutting them up as you need them," Judy said. "Canned food is safer from poisoning," Dexter said quietly, but just loud enough for Judy to hear him.

"Oh. I hadn't thought about that," Judy said sheepishly. "It's all right. This is probably your first assignment of this nature, correct?" Dexter asked her. "It's my second assignment to protect a person of interest," Judy said. "I see. Out of curiosity, Officer Hopps, how often do you encounter reptiles in your areas of jurisdiction?" Dexter replied.

"Um... there aren't any that I know of in Tundra Town, and I've only seen a handful of lizard homes in Sahara Square. There's this one Komodo Dragon who lives in the Rainforest District, and I've maybe noticed a few turtles walking around in parts of Savannah Central and the Meadowlands. I've never been to the Outback region, though," Judy replied. "Outback region?" Dexter asked her as he grabbed a box of candy and examined its ingredients list before placing it back on the shelf.

"It's where the majority of Zootopia's bird and reptile populations live. I've met a few crows, with a real distaste for police officers, who live there," Judy said. "I thought you just said that you've never been there?" Dexter said. "I haven't, but the crows who lived there were arrested in a bar here in Savannah Central. That's how I encountered them," Judy explained.

"Corvids. The earliest avians to gain sentience, followed by the parrot families," Dexter said with a grin. Judy raised an eyebrow. "I studied a lot of history when I was in school. I'm a bit of a historian, although mostly in regards to natural history and evolutionary biology," Dexter explained to her. Judy nodded her head in understanding.

"So, are there any rabbits and hares where you live?" Judy asked the kangaroo. "Rabbits and hares? Oh, yes, plenty of them, although... they're European types, though. I believe that you cottontails are a bit less common," Dexter replied. "What about foxes?" Judy asked him. "Depends on the type, I suppose. If you mean red foxes, then yes, but not many others. Dingoes are the primary canids back home," Dexter replied.

"Hey, speaking of dingoes, was Lieutenant Matheson anywhere near Central Station yesterday?" Judy asked the kangaroo. "Central Station? That's the place with the trains, right?" Dexter asked her. "Yeah," Judy said. "No. We arrived here from the airport and went straight to the precinct, although Potts did do some reconnaissance on the safe-house to make sure that things checked out before he returned to the station with the rest of us," Dexter replied.

"Why do you ask?" Dexter asked her. "Well, an old goat called us about a suspicious person yesterday who happened to be a dingo," Judy explained. "Hmm, I'm not surprised. Dingoes don't seem to be very common in Zootopia, do they?" Dexter asked her. "Well, no. Chances are that most of them live in the Outback Region," Judy said.

"Yes, a lot of canines seem rather... distrusted," Dexter noted. "Um... yeah," Judy said. "It's mostly foxes, though, am I correct?" Dexter asked her. "Unfortunately," Judy replied. "A shame. It would seem that Reynard has had a greater impact on general perception than Robin Hood," Dexter said with a wry smile.

"What about Robin Hood?" Judy and Dexter both turned to look at Nick as he walked towards the cart, carrying two boxes of frozen bug burgers. "Oh, just a history lesson," Dexter said to the fox. "About foxes?" Nick asked. "Well, since foxes of any species aren't very common back home, I was curious about how many there are here in Zootopia," Dexter lied.

"A lot," Nick said as he placed the boxes in the cart. "Tell me, have none of these people ever seen a police officer before?" Dexter asked. "Huh?" Nick asked him. "They keep watching you for some reason," Dexter said. Judy's ears raised in surprise and Nick just rolled his eyes. "I'm the first, and currently only, fox on in the ZPD," Nick said.

"Why is that? I thought the motto of Zootopia was that anyone can be anything. Do most foxes simply not want to be police officers?" Dexter asked. "That's not it," Nick said. "So they do, but are unable? Or are prevented from doing so? Or does nobody trust them or want to recruit them?" Dexter asked pointedly. "McClaren!" Judy hissed through clenched teeth. Judy knew that the subject of prejudice was a delicate one, especially for Nick.

"What? I am simply asking a question regarding an observation. I fail to see the problem," Dexter said bluntly as the trio made their way over to another aisle. "It's just... that's kind of rude to talk about in public," Judy said. "And why is that?" Dexter asked. When he received no response, he sighed and shook his head before he resumed checking his shopping list.

* * *

**The Watering Hole, Bar & Grille**

Maulia and Zack entered the doors of the bar and looked around. "You're sure that this is the right place?" Zack asked Maulia. "Watering Hole Bar and Grille," Maulia said. Zack looked around at the various patrons. Over at a booth were a lion couple, and at a table near them were a warthog and a meerkat, both of whom were devouring a plate of... something. In the booth next to the lion couple were four jaguars, drinking and laughing heartily.

Sitting at the bar were three wolves, a panther, a black bear, and a Bengal tiger. At a table behind them were two male zebras and two female gazelles. At a booth near the door sat a group of six raccoons, eating and talking and carrying on while a pair of wildebeest ate quietly in the booth next to them.

At a booth over by the corner, with several empty booths and tables near it, Maulia saw a koala and a wallaby sitting together. The koala looked up and waved at them. "Hey, ding dongs, get over here!" he called them. Maulia and Zack both made their way over to Wilbur's table and sat down opposite him and Roland, the wallaby.

"So, can we finally order our food?" Roland asked impatiently. "Sure, sure. Just wait for someone to walk by," Wilbur said. "I don't like waiting. Especially when I have to work with these two," he said, looking at Maulia and Zack. "Aww, what's wrong?" Maulia asked him.

"You know damn well what's wrong. You two always take too damn long to complete your assignments, whether you're seeing the sights or fuckin' each other's brains out, neither of you can ever get the job done and over with right away," Roland complained. "Then why did you agree to work with us on this assignment?" Zack asked him.

"Because Mr. Domo is _paying me_ to do this," he replied. "And you love a chance to make something blow up," Maulia said. "Careful, Maulia, I might just make that something your head," Roland warned her. "Touch her and Mr. Domo won't be able to recognize any part of your body until it's been reassembled like a jigsaw puzzle," Zack said with a warning tone, curling his lips to show off his teeth and growl at the wallaby.

"Will the three of you shut up already?" Wilbur asked in an annoyed tone. "There's a waitress comin' over here," he said. "Hello!" said the waitress, a young doe with big blue eyes. "Welcome to The Watering Hole Bar and Grille. I'm Serena, and I'll be your waitress today. Here are some menus, and I'll be back around in a few minutes," she said before walking off.

"Okay. Before she comes back, when do we strike?" Wilbur asked. "Let's eat first, then discuss business," Zack said as he studied the menu. "Fine," Wilbur said. "Lazy pups," Roland muttered under his breath as he too began reading his menu. "Quit being such a joey*," Wilbur snapped at his fellow marsupial.

* * *

Pulling up to the safe house, Judy began to wonder if using a highly recognizable police cruiser for this assignment was such a bright idea. Granted, the police cruiser was designed to be modular inside so that any animal could use it, but with a police cruiser being so noticeable, was it really the best vehicle to use when trying to remain inconspicuous and prevent their key witness from being discovered? Judy decided that she would talk to Bogo after returning to the station later that day.

"So, do you think these groceries will last you guys most of the week?" Nick asked as Judy turned off the cruiser's ignition and unlocked the doors. "Hopefully," Dexter said as he stepped out of the vehicle, carrying four grocery bags. "I should hope so," he replied. Nick and Judy went around and grabbed the other six bags and carried them to the front door.

Dexter rang the doorbell. The view-port slid open and then the door was opened by Lieutenant Matheson. "Did you remember to buy enough toilet paper?" she asked him. "Of course I did," Dexter replied as he walked inside, followed by Judy and Nick. Lawrence walked over and offered to carry some of the bags for them. "It's the least I can do to thank you," he said.

"Thank us?" Nick asked the monitor lizard. "Well, for providing extra security and helping with the food shopping. I don't know how long we're going to be here," Lawrence replied. "Oh. Um, you're welcome," Nick said with a nod of his head. Judy flashed a smile and nodded her head as well. An hour later, the groceries had been put away, and Nick and Judy were leaving the safe house to begin their patrol of the neighborhood until their shift was over.

"So," Nick asked Judy as she slowly drove past an open garage with a black bear working on his car, "I guess this is what we'll be doing for the rest of the week." Judy nodded her head as she watched the neighborhood to make sure that no one was running onto the street. "Um, hey, Judy, would you like to, you know, go get that dinner with me tonight, since we had to cancel yesterday?" Nick asked her.

"Um... sure," Judy replied hesitantly, as though she had been thinking about something before Nick interrupted her. The pair became silent again until Nick thought of something. "Um, Judy, out of curiosity, are you ever going to find an apartment with a working bathroom attached to it?" Nick asked her. "Nick, I've told you before; I like my apartment. I like my neighbors, despite how noisy they are, and I'm trying to be frugal with my spending," Judy replied.

"I know, but you deserve better. I-I mean, that's not an apartment, that's a closet," Nick said to her. "Well, where am I supposed to go?" Judy asked him. "I don't know. You could stay with me until you can find someplace. I mean, with your determination and skills, it shouldn't take you more than a week at the most to find a new place to live. Heck, you might find one the very next day after staying over," Nick said.

"Thank you for the praise, Nick, but I'm fine with what I have," Judy said. "You really could do better, though," Nick said. "I know, but I'm happy where I'm at," Judy said. "Are you?" Nick asked her. "I mean, are you truly happy living in a room that doesn't have a toilet or shower in it?" he reiterated. "What is it with you and bathrooms?" Judy asked him. "I just think that they're essential to proper living arrangements is all. I like being able to stay inside my apartment when I have to relieve myself, you know?" Nick asked her.

"I don't have to wait in a line. I don't have to smell anyone else's stink but my own, not that I think it's pleasant, and I don't have to worry about the toilet seat being covered in... _other animals' waste,_ " Nick said in disgust. Judy sighed in defeat. "Okay. If I start looking for a place with better utilities, will you stop harping on me about it?" Judy asked him. "Judy, I'm only being concerned for your well-being," Nick said.

"Yes or no? Will you stop pestering me if I do this?" Judy asked him. "Yes. I will stop pestering you... if you actually find someplace inside of a month," Nick said. "In a month's time? Okay, I can work with that," Judy said, smirking.

* * *

**Later That Night, Somewhere in Savanna Central**

"This is what I've got," a large water buffalo said as he laid three folders full of papers and photographs on a table. Maulia picked one up and began to look at the pictures. "Good. These were taken today and last night?" Maulia asked the buffalo. "Three hours before you guys arrived, in fact. I had to do it on my own, though, and not all of those cameras had connection ports for my equipment," he said.

"That's fine. You got us what we needed," Zack said as he looked at a picture of a police cruiser outside of a house. He then looked at another picture showing two officers, a rabbit and a fox, walking out of the house next to a kangaroo. "Exactly what we needed."

"Maulia, does this rabbit look familiar to you?" Zack asked her. "Hey, yeah, isn't she the same rabbit whose face is plastered on those ZPD recruitment posters and pamphlets?" Maulia replied. "She sure is," Zack confirmed. "Officer Hopps? You guys are going to target her?" the buffalo asked. "Only if she gets in the way. Why?" Zack replied. "Because if you kill Officer Hopps, then you'll have ninety percent of the Zootopia Police force after your necks," the buffalo said. "And not just her, but... I've heard that she's the godmother of Mr. Big's granddaughter," the buffalo added.

"Who?" Zack asked. "Mr. Big. He's the biggest and most powerful crime lord in Zootopia," the buffalo explained. "So, with that kind of connection, killing her is just asking for trouble, so I'd take care to avoid that if I were you."

"As long as she stays out of our way, that shouldn't be a problem," Zack said. "Here," Maulia said as she pulled some twenties out of her pocket and placed them on the table. The buffalo took the cash and nodded his head as the two dingoes gathered the data and walked out of the private room of the strip club. "Where does Komo find these contacts? He has to have been in this place before at some point," Zack said before he eyed the naked antelope up on the stage, swaying her hips rhythmically to the beat of some trance music.  The sight caused the dingo to lick his lips.

"Hey, Maulie, let's head back to the hotel room and start headhunting tomorrow," Zack said with an undertone of eagerness in his voice. "Well, I was hoping to have some fun tonight, but I guess it can wait until tomorrow," Maulia replied. "Oh, don't worry, we'll definitely be having _fun,_ " Zack said seductively with a devilish smirk, sending shivers down Maulia's spine as images of the two of them making a mess of the hotel room flashed through her head.  "First one to the car gets to receive head first," Maulia said before darting away from Zack. Both dingoes made their way out of the strip club and back over to their rental car, driving away and heading for their hotel back in Sahara Square.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Joey is the term for a juvenile and/or infant marsupial.


	3. Bad Dog, No Biscuits

Disclaimer: Disney is the property of Zootopia... I think.

* * *

**Bad Dog, No Biscuits**

* * *

Date: Wednesday, May 25th, 2019 

"I'm bored," Nick said as he and Judy sat in their patrol car. "Thirty-two," Judy said as a car passed them, reading the speed off the scanner in her hands. "Well, it's better than parking duty like Bogo had originally given us," Judy said. "Yeah, thank you, Mister Albigul, for needing witness protection," Nick said dryly.

"Well, if you're that ungrateful we can just ask for parking duty from Bogo again," Judy said as another car passed them. "Forty-three," she said. "I'm not ungrateful, I'm just a little bored and... well, kind of confused," Nick replied. "Confused?" Judy asked him. "Yeah. If the police over in Reptaelia couldn't protect their witnesses in their own territory, then what makes them think that we can help out here?" Nick replied.

"Bogo explained it already, Nick. We're an ocean away from Reptaelia, which makes it more difficult for the bad guys to get to Mr. Albigul," Judy said. "Yeah, but Bogo also said that all of those other witnesses were also under police protection. So... how did the bad guys get to them?" Nick asked.

"I don't understand it either," Judy said. "Carrots... did Bogo say if the officers guarding the witnesses survived or not?" Nick asked her. "I don't recall," Judy replied. "We need to find out more about how the other witnesses died, and whether or not the police guarding them were injured, killed, or survived unscathed," Nick said, his train of thought taking a turn down a very dark and uncomfortable tunnel.

"Wait, why do you want to know what happened to the officers guarding the other witnesses?" Judy asked him. "Because, there could have been crooked cops letting the bad guys get to the witnesses," Nick said. "Nick... you can't just accuse another country's police of being corrupt," Judy said. "Carrots, have you already forgotten about Lisker and the others?" Nick asked her.

"No," Judy said solemnly. As much as she didn't like thinking about it, the case involving former Lieutenant Milton Lisker and his ring of vigilante cops had opened Judy's eyes to the fact that corruption existed everywhere, not just in politics. Lisker and the officers who followed him were crooked in the worst way possible: they believed that their actions were true justice, and that their way was the only way to get things done. They had murdered dozens of criminals in the name of vigilante justice, and only after three of them had been killed did Lisker finally realize the weight of his actions.

The case eventually lead to Judy questioning her faith in her duties as a police officer, while it caused Nick to harden his own resolve to prove his worth as a police officer, as Lisker had actually attempted to frame him in order to lead the other cops astray. With the help of Clawhauser and Inspector Conan Milius, Judy had managed to prove Nicks innocence and expose Lisker. Unfortunately, Sergeant Hooper was still dead, and Nick was still

"Still, that doesn't mean it's the only explanation," Judy said. "Carrots, I know that you want to believe in good always triumphing over evil, but sometimes, you have to realize that not everyone can get a happy ending, and not all cops are trying to make the world a better place for everyone," Nick said.

"I know," Judy said with a sigh. "But, Mr. Albigul is here, in Zootopia, not Reptaelia," Judy asserted. "That doesn't mean a crooked cop from Reptaelia can't tip off... Ko-Kodo-Komo... that crime lord about Albigul's stay over here," Nick said thoughtfully. Judy's ears slowly raised as she she began registering Nick's words.

"We... We need to start doing some digging," Judy said reluctantly. "Yes, we certainly do," Nick said with a sigh. "But, we should talk to Bogo about this, though. Let him know why we want the information, and maybe he'll be agreeable about it," Judy said. "So... I should just let you do all of the talking?" Nick asked with a grin. "Most of the talking, not all of it," Judy corrected him. "Fair enough," Nick said.

"So, when-seventy-five!" Judy exclaimed as she saw the number on the scanner. She kicked the cruiser into gear and pulled out of the parked spot, chasing down the speeding car. Nick turned on the cruiser's flashing lights and blaring signal. The offending speeder soon pulled over to the side of the road, and Judy did the same.

"Okay, who gets to go up?" Nick asked. Judy held out her paw in a fist. Nick looked at it and then at her face with a raised eyebrow. "Rock Paper Scissors," Judy said. Nick sighed and held up his fist. "Rock, Paper, Scissors, Shoot!" Judy said. Her paw had scissors while Nick was flat as paper. "Ha! I win," Judy exclaimed triumphantly before getting out of the vehicle.

Judy calmly walked over to pulled-over car. It was a green-tinted station wagon, and it seemed to have been made for smaller animals. Walking up to the already lowered driver's-side window, Judy looked in and saw a wallaby at the steering wheel. "Morning, officer," the wallaby said in a tired tone.

"Morning," Judy responded. "May I please see your license and registration?" Judy asked the wallaby. "Sure," the wallaby said with a sigh as he reached over to the glove compartment and opened it before sticking his hand inside and retrieving his registration. "And your license?" Judy asked him. The wallaby retrieved that as well from his wallet and handed it to her.

The license had a picture of the wallaby in front of her, with his name listed as George L. Rosen, and other information. Judy swiped the license through a portable scanner and checked for any prior violations, but found none. "Okay, it seems to check out," Judy said as she handed the license and registration back to the wallaby. "Now, do you know how fast you were going?" Judy asked him. "Listen, I woke up late this morning and I'm in a rush," the wallaby replied.

"That isn't what I asked. I can understand wanting to move as fast as possible, but in doing so, you're putting the lives of others at risk. The speed limit exists for a reason, and you were going twenty five miles above it on this section of the road," Judy explained. "Not too far up ahead is a residential area, where families live, with children who play on the streets. You need to make sure that you keep your speed down when you get there," Judy said.

"Of course," the wallaby said, clearly not thrilled at being lectured. "Now, I didn't see any citations on your record, so I'm going to give you a warning," Judy said. "Watch your speed, especially when you're near residential areas with children," Judy warned him. "Of course, officer," the wallaby said. "You may go when I give you the signal," Judy said as she turned around and walked back to the cruiser.

As soon as she waved him off, the wallaby started the car and drove away, staying under the speed limit until he was out of sight. Judy sighed and plopped back into her seat. "So, I take it that went pretty well?" Nick asked her. "Just a wallaby who woke up late for work," Judy said.

"Did you give him a warning or a ticket?" Nick asked her. "A warning. He didn't have any marks on his record when I checked it," Judy replied. "Although, his car did smell a little weird, but it also looked kind of old, too," Judy said. "What kind of smell?" Nick asked her. "I'm not sure," Judy said. "Maybe you should've asked him to pop the trunk," Nick suggested. "It wasn't that strong, and I noticed an air freshener in the front. Besides, he's long gone by now," Judy said.

Meanwhile, miles up ahead, Roland Long-Hopp, mercenary for hire, continued driving George L. Rosen's car. Rosen himself laid dead in a large bag in the trunk, and he would continue to do so until Roland found a place to pull over and place some air freshening sticks in the trunk before finding a place to stash the body. After completing his mission, Roland would then place the body back in the car and cause it to crash into something, making George Rosen's death look like an automobile accident. Had Nick been the one to speak to the wallaby after pulling him over, his years of experience as a con-artist would have allowed him to recognize the modified ID for what it was, and the mercenary could have been found out sooner.

* * *

Lawrence Albigul sat back on the couch in the living room of the safe house, watching TV while officers McClaren and Potts played a game of Jenga in the kitchen. " _-says that this is merely indicative of a small slump in job growth within that particular district, and does not reflect the overall rate of job growth in Zootopia as a whole,_ " the newscaster said. Lawrence changed the channel.

"- _surgery can help maintain proper vision. Visit the nearest local Lasik Eye physician today!_ " Lawrence rolled his eyes. " _Part animal! Part machine! All Cop! RoboCop, directed by Paul Deerhoven, playing tonight on Action Central at eight o'clock!_ " Lawrence shrugged his shoulders. "Eh, maybe I'll watch it," he muttered to himself.

" _If your tail isn't lifting or swaying the way it used to, it may be a sign of a serious problem with your spinal column that could-,_ " a doctor said on the next commercial, causing Lawrence to change the channel again. " _Come to Growler's Bar & Grille, located on Tenth Street in the Rainforest District! We have-_" Lawrence changed the channel again until he finally pressed the guide button and searched for something interesting to watch.

"Hey, what'cha doin'?" Lieutenant Matheson asked him as she walked down the stairs and stepped into the living room. "Just staving off boredom," Lawrence replied tiredly. "I see. Well-" "Jenga!" Randy called out from the kitchen as the little wooden blocks fell to the floor and scattered around the kitchen. "Oh yeah, board games," Lawrence said absentmindedly, "I forgot we had those."

"Anyway, as I was going to say, sitting around all day can't be too healthy for you," Matheson said. "And I'm sure it'll be fine if I just take a stroll outside, is that right?" Lawrence retorted with a serious expression on his face. "Well, someone would have to walk with you, to make sure that you're safe," Matheson said.

"True, but then who would keep an eye on the kids?" Lawrence asked as he gestured to Randy and Dexter fighting over who got to choose the next board game. "You can't expect me to take one of them out in public," Lawrence said. "Actually, since kangaroos aren't uncommon in Zootopia, it would be much less conspicuous to have one of them walking with you," Matheson said. "I suppose you have a point there," Lawrence conceded.

"Say, where's Spence?" Lawrence asked. "He's in the basement checking on a pipe that he thinks might need to be replaced," Matheson replied. "Oh. And those two local cops? Where are they at?" Lawrence asked. "They're patrolling the neighborhood. They have a route so that they don't sit outside in one spot all day and look suspicious," Matheson explained.

"Right, now... those are the wolf and tiger today, right?" Lawrence asked. "That is correct," Elizabeth replied. "So, how come they only stay here so many hours of the day and then no one patrols at night?" Lawrence asked her. "The four of us can handle things after they're gone. They're merely here for additional security during the day," Elizabeth said.

"Right. So... wanna go for a stroll?" Lawrence asked her. "Sure. Just let me get some gear ready. I need you to put on a bullet-proof vest underneath something, though. I don't want to take any chances," Elizabeth said. "If you don't want to take chances, why did you agree to taking a walk outside?" Lawrence asked her.

* * *

Officer Benjamin Clawhauser checked his watch, noticing that it was soon time to check in on Whittaker and Chaney. Tearing his eyes away from the latest Gazelle music video on his phone, Clawhauser prepared to call them on the special frequency that Chief Bogo had ordered be used for this assignment. Just before he could get the radio set up, a female wallaby entered the station.

"Hello, welcome to the Zootopia Police Department's First Precinct. I'm Officer Benjamin Clawhauser!" he said brightly. "Um, yes," the female said. "Um, I... I'd like to report a missing animal," she said nervously. "Okay. Can I have your name please?" "M-My name is Patricia Rosen," she replied. "All right, and who's missing?" Clawhauser asked as he grabbed a pen and a piece of paper. "It's... it's my husband, George Rosen. He didn't come home from work last night, and he hasn't answered his phone all day," she said.

"I called the office several times today, and his boss said that he never clocked in this morning. No one's seen him since last night, and he told me that he would see me last night when he called me during his lunch break," Patricia said. "Okay. Where does he work?" Clawhauser asked her. "He works at Orange Hill Plaza, in the Insurance Department," Patricia said. "Orange Hill Plaza, isn't that the place with that cool science center in it?" Clawhauser asked. Patricia nodded her head.

"Okay, and does he walk, ride, or drive to work?" Clawhauser asked. "He drives his car to work. It's a green station wagon, from the late nineties. I don't really know the exact model and make," she replied. "Okay, now, what time does he usually get off of work?" Clawhauser asked her. "Usually around five in the afternoon," Patricia said. "Okay, I'll call Chief Bogo and ask him if he can see you. Now, I'll need you to tell him everything that you've told me," Clawhauser said. Patricia nodded her head.

After confirming that Bogo was available, Clawhauser saw Francine and asked her to take the female wallaby to Bogo's office on the second floor. Sighing in sympathy at the situation, Clawhauser then used the radio to call Whittaker and Chaney. Ever since the Night Howler Incident, missing animal cases had started causing him to feel morose whenever he heard about them.

* * *

"Doesn't this feel good; getting fresh air?" Elizabeth asked Lawrence as they walked on the sidewalk. "I guess so. Although... I feel a bit heavy with this vest on," Lawrence replied, tugging at his shirt. "Quit whining about it. It's for your own protection," Elizabeth said.

"Sure it is," Lawrence retorted. "So, I overheard Chief Rockatansky when I was in that waiting room, and I was wondering... what exactly did he mean by saying that this case was your best shot? Best shot at what?" Lawrence asked her. "It's nothing for you to worry about," Elizabeth said, her mood souring at the mention of Chief Rockatansky's name.

"So, have you known the others very long?" Lawrence asked her. "I've known Spencer for about a year, but the two 'roo's just got transferred to the unit after finishing their probationary period," Elizabeth replied. "So... not really," Lawrence said. "They seem to do their job well enough," Elizabeth said.

Lawrence looked across the street and saw an armadillo staring at him. Looking away, Lawrence continued walking, trying not to notice the stares coming from some of the other animals walking around them on the sidewalks as they turned a corner. "I guess they're not used to seeing reptiles very often," Lawrence said quietly.

"So I've noticed," Elizabeth said. "Maybe this wasn't such a good idea," Lawrence said as he saw a couple of deer staring at them with frowns. "We should... probably head back," Lawrence said. "You probably should," said a deep voice. Elizabeth and Lawrence both turned to see a large bison in a business suit staring at them. "We don't need any trouble from your kind," the bison said, narrowing his eyes.

"Um... do you mean me or her?" Lawrence asked as he gestured between Elizabeth and himself. "You, boot-hide," the bison said. A bear walked up behind him. "Hey, Gene I came by to pick up my-hello," he said with a frown as he noticed the dingo and monitor lizard.

"Yeah, let's go back to the house," the lizard said. "House? You two live together?" the bison said in disgust. "Only temporarily," Lawrence replied. "Sick... perverts," the bear muttered while shaking his head. "Okay, you two need to go back to your house of perversion in the outback region, and stay out away from here. We don't need you exposing children to your disgusting lifestyle," the bison said.

"I think there's been a misunderstanding here. She and I aren't in an intimate relationship," Lawrence said. "We're just rooming together to save money until one of us can afford to move somewhere else," Lawrence lied. "Besides... she, uh... likes other females," Lawrence also lied again. "Say... what?" Elizabeth asked him.

"Listen, I don't care, just get your scaly hide out of our city and go back to the desert," the bison said. "Um... I can't really do that," Lawrence said. "Albigul, you need to stop talking," Elizabeth said. "Why? It's not my fault this guy is a dickhead," Lawrence said. "That's it!" the bison exclaimed, charging at the lizard. Lawrence's eyes widened in shock, until he saw the bison get flipped over onto his back.

Lawrence and the bear both stared in awe as Elizabeth kept her foot on the bison's chest. "Touch the lizard, and you'll lose those arms permanently," she said firmly. "Sick freak," the bison muttered. "Larry, let's go back," Elizabeth said. "Uh... sure, but my name is Lawrence," he said. "Just shut up," Elizabeth said as they walked away.

"So, um, which one of us wanted to take a walk outside again?" Lawrence asked the female dingo. "Lawrence, please stop talking," Elizabeth asked. "But-" "Just. Stop. Talking," she said with a glare. "Fine," Lawrence said in defeat.

 _This is just what I needed: a public incident. I'll be lucky if I get away with what I did back there. I mean, using force on a civilian, and in another country no less!? All my chances at promotion just got thrown out the window. Still... maybe I can at least prevent myself from being demoted if I explain the situation_ , Elizabeth thought to herself as she made her way back to the house. She sighed as she looked around the suburban neighborhood. Much of the neighborhoods in Zootopia, especially those in Savannah Central, were packed-in city neighborhoods.

This one, however, was a suburban-type neighborhood, which was an unusual layout, although since it was also very close to a large park, the appearance may have simply been an extension of the park's overall grassy hill look and feel. She was glad that Lawrence was able to keep quiet, and when she reached to doorstep of the house, she turned to congratulate him, only to see that he was gone. "Lawrence?" She asked in a concerned tone, which soon became panicked as she realized that her charge had disappeared. In an instant, Elizabeth saw her entire career being flushed down the toilet, not to mention the entire case against Komo Domo being brought to a screeching halt. " _ **Fuck!**_ "

* * *

"Stupid traffic lights," Wilbur muttered as he waited for the red light to turn green. "Hey, it could be worse," Zack said from the back seat. "Please, _don't_ tempt fate," Wilbur responded with a groan. "Look, all we need to do is take the next left at this intersection, and we'll be on our way to that nice little suburban area where our target is being hidden," Zack said as he looked at the GPS in the front seat of the jeep that had been given to them by one of their contacts, a tapir named Kelso.

"You said that two intersections ago," Wilbur retorted as he waited for the light to change green. "I jumped the gun when I saw the GPS announce that we had a left turn," Zack said while rolling his eyes. "It's okay. As long as you don't fire off too soon with me, you'll be fine," Maulia said. "Wait... was that a sex joke?" Wilbur asked her. "Hmm, let me think... yes," Maulia replied with a grin.

Wilbur sighed and watched the traffic flow through the intersection. Just before the light changed green, an SUV with its windows rolled down barreled through. In the few seconds that Wilbur could make it out, he saw that inside of the vehicle were a bear, a bison, a deer, two pigs, and a lizard who looked suspiciously like their target, although the rope around his muzzle difficult to tell.

Nah. No way the police would let their only surviving witness go joyriding unsupervised like that. It has to be a resident, the koala rationalized as the light turned green and he made his left turn. "Okay, now we keep going straight," Zack said. "Hey, Maulia, do you plan on us killing the lizard today or are just staking out the area to attack later?" Wilbur asked her.

"Depends on my mood," Maulia replied. "Although, scouting the area and making sure that our target is in there is the most logical step. We'll do that and then see what happens from there," Maulia replied. "Sounds good. Now, do we have disguises for walkin' around out here?" Wilbur asked them. "Sure, I... oops," Zack said.

"Oops? What do you mean, 'oops'?" Wilbur asked. "Yes, Honey, just what _do_ you mean?" Maulia asked him. "I, uh, left them with Roland," Zack said with a sigh. "Dammit!" Wilbur exclaimed. "We needed those things!" the koala added in a frustrated yell. "Relax, I'll just call him and have him meet up with us," Zack said.

"Now, when we kill this guy, should we make it fast and quick, or should we toy with him first?" Zack asked with a sickening smile. "I vote for just gettin' the job done, unless of course the guy pisses me off, then we can take our time," Wilbur said gruffly. "Should we kill him right inside of the safe house, or should we take him somewhere?" Maulia pondered out loud.

"Where would we take him?" Wilbur asked her as he slowed down after seeing the changing speed limit sign. "I suppose we could take him to that basement under Kelso's shop," Maulia said thoughtfully. "What about Sal's place?" Zack asked her. "Nah, he doesn't wanna see us until it's time to leave," Maulia said. "But then it would be a fun little surprise for him!" Zack suggested.

"No. Besides, Kelso has that large multi-function printer in his basement," Maulia said. "Um, you kinda lost me there," Wilbur said. "We can topple the printer onto the lizard, or we can scan his face and print out selfies!" Zack exclaimed giddily. "We can do before and after shots! Before he's dead, and _after!_ " Maulia cried out in agreement.

Wilbur raised an eyebrow as he listened to the two dingoes merrily discuss their brutal torture and execution plans for Lawrence Albigul. "We can force him to listen to a recording of nails on a chalk board!" Maulia suggested. "No, no it wouldn't carry the same frequency as actual nails on a chalkboard in the same room," Zack said.

"Wait, let's tie him to the back of the jeep and drag him over miles of uneven road and dirt!" Zack suggested. Maulia squealed in delight before reaching back and kissing Zack. "I vote we just shoot him and get it over with," Wilbur said. "No! We want fun!" Maulia retorted. "You think torturing someone is fun!?" Wilbur asked them in bewilderment. Zack and Maulia both looked at each other before looking at Wilbur. "YES!" they both replied in unison.

* * *

The radio in Judy and Nick's cruiser came to life. " _Hopps, Wilde, this is Whittaker. Our package has been abducted. Please respond,_ " Whittaker said over the radio. "Ten-Four. Where was the 'package' last seen?" Judy asked into the radio, with the word package being a code for Lawrence Albigul. " _About three houses away from the storage site,_ " Whittaker replied.

"How long ago?" Judy asked. " _Five to ten minutes ago, according to Matheson. Some of the locals were less than enthusiastic upon discovering that a package of this type was in their neighborhood,_ " Whittaker replied. "How did they find out?" Judy asked. " _They went for a walk outside,_ " Whittaker replied.

"Does Matheson have any idea where the package might be at this time?" Judy asked with concern. " _She said one of the locals mentioned an outback of some kind. I'm assuming that they were referring to the Outback Region,_ " Whittaker said. "We'll head there right now," Judy said as she put the cruiser into motion.

* * *

" _We'll head there right now,_ " Judy Hopps said over the radio. Roland Long-Hopp grinned before pulling his car out of its parking space and entering the GPS coordinates for the fastest route from Sahara Square to the Outback Region. "Time to rock and roll," he said to himself as he started driving.

* * *

Lawrence Albigul grunted as his body impacted the ground. Looking up, he saw the five mammals who had grabbed him, including a very pissed-off bison. Untying the rope from around his snout, the deer proceeded to walk back to the car. "Now," the bison said with a grunt, "I hope you'll remember to stay with your own kind where you belong."

"And if we catch you back in our neighborhood again, we won't be quite so friendly," one of the pigs said. Lawrence shook his head and sighed. "Oh, one more thing," the bison said as he stepped closer. Lawrence's eyes shut just before the bison's hoof collided with his face.

"Keep to your own kind, scale-head," the bison said as he turned around and joined the others in the SUV. Lawrence rubbed his mouth as he watched the vehicle drive away before making a U-turn and heading back to the entrance tunnel to Savannah Central. "Bastards," Lawrence muttered under his breath as he stood up.

He looked around at the somewhat familiar terrain. The Outback Region definitely resembled Reptaelia in many ways, although the buildings had some different aesthetics in regards to architecture and outside appearance. Lawrence sighed before he started walking towards the connecting tunnel between the Outback Region and Savannah Central.

After ten minutes of walking, Lawrence saw a vehicle approaching in the distance. Soon, he was looking at a blue ZPD cruiser as it pulled up along the side of the road. The window lowered and Officer Wilde looked out at him. "Mr. Albigul, what are you doing out here?" he asked him.

"I was... abducted," Lawrence said. "Right, well, get on in," Nick said as he got out and opened the door to the back of the cruiser. "Thank you," Lawrence said with a nod of his head as he climbed inside the cruiser's back seat area. He quickly buckled his seat bet as Nick returned to the front passenger seat of the cruiser. "This is Officer Hopps. We've recovered the package and are returning to the storage site, over," Judy said into the radio. Judy soon brought them back onto the road and drove onward until they came to a spot to make a legal U-Turn.

"So, who exactly abducted you?" Nick asked the lizard. "Some... mammals who didn't like having a reptile in their neighborhood. A bear, a bison, a deer, and two pigs," Lawrence replied. "How could they do that?" Judy asked in disgust. "It was quite easy, really. They just grabbed me and threw me into their van, despite the weight of the Kevlar vest I'm wearing," Lawrence said.

"You were wearing one of those this whole time?" Nick asked him. "Lieutenant Matheson forced me to put it on. She was also the one who suggested going outside for a walk in the first place," Lawrence replied. "I thought her job was to keep you safe," Nick commented.

"I said the same thing to her," Lawrence said. "So, if you don't mind me asking, just what exactly did you witness that makes you so important to this case against... this crime boss?" Nick asked Lawrence as they passed through the Regional Connection Tunnel. "I witnessed a murder that Mr. Domo committed in person," Lawrence replied. Judy's eye widened slightly, and her ears rose.

"Yikes. Well, aside from a few prejudiced neighbors, you should still be relatively safe here in Zootopia," Nick said. "That's only if Mr. Domo doesn't realize that I've left Reptaelia," Lawrence said. "And how high are those chances?" Nick asked as they exited the tunnel. Just as Lawrence was about to speak, Nick saw a car passing them with the driver side window down. The driver, a wallaby, was staring straight at him with a strange grin on his face.

Nick raised an eyebrow as the car sped up. "Judy, was that the same station wagon that we pulled over this morning?" Nick asked. "I-I think it was," Judy said. Judy looked into the side mirror and saw the go a distance before making an illegal U-Turn and speeding up.

"What is he doing?" Judy asked quietly. "what? What's happening?" Nick asked her. "He's turned around and he's... I think he's _following us_ ," Judy said. "Why would he be following us?" Nick asked. Checking the mirror, Judy saw the green car pull up to them in the passing lane. "What's he doing now?" Nick asked with a mixture of anticipation and fear.

The passenger-side window rolled down and Nick and Judy both saw something that shouldn't be in the hands of civilians: a grenade launcher. " _Hit the brakes!_ " Nick shouted at Judy, who did just that. A split second later, the wallaby fired the launcher, and a grenade exploded in front of the cruiser. "Shit!" Nick Exclaimed.

Judy lifted her foot off of the brake and sped forward after noticing the cars moving behind her. "Try to get behind him!" Nick exclaimed. Judy turned her head and saw a minivan behind the station wagon. "I can't!" Judy exclaimed.

"Hey, Officer Wilde? I think the chances are pretty damn high!" Lawrence shouted. "What!?" Nick asked him. "You wanted to know the chances of Komo finding out I'd left Reptaelia. I'd say they're pretty high right now!" Lawrence shouted fearfully. "I'm gonna try to pass him and get far enough ahead that we can lose him!" Judy shouted. "Albigul, get another Kevlar vest on!" "What!?" Lawrence asked. "Don't argue; just do it!" Nick ordered.

In a few seconds, another explosion rocked the side of the cruiser, sending everything into chaos as Nick, Judy, and Lawrence screamed. Nick grabbed the radio. "Come in Dispatch! This is Officer Nick Wilde, Cruiser number Seven-Alpha-Eight-Nine! Situation is Ten-Seventy-One!" Nick cried into the radio. Lawrence cried out some reptilian prayer while putting on the second bullet-proof vest. "Great Squamas, please don't let me die!"

Judy put the petal to the metal and the cruiser surged forward, barrelling past the station wagon. The wallaby pulled the grenade launcher back and let up his attack for few minutes as the two cars made their way onto the Freeway. The green car eventually caught up to them again. "Dammit, doesn't he give up?!" Judy asked rhetorically. The wallaby then resumed his attack when he pulled out a compact submachine gun and began firing at the cruiser in short bursts.

"Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit! Shit!" Lawrence cried over and over again. "Just hold on!" Judy shouted as she tried to increase the cruiser's speed. "Now he'll be directly behind us!" Nick exclaimed as they passed the green car, which then maneuvered behind them.

"Dispatch, come in! This is Officer Wilde! We are being pursued by an armed gunman while traveling on Route-ah!" Nick cried out as an explosion rocked the back of the cruiser. The wallaby had switched out his SMG for his grenade launcher again. "Judy, try to shake him!" Nick cried. "I'm trying! I'm trying!" Judy exclaimed as she swerved the cruiser while trying to maneuver between the other vehicles on the road.

Back in the green station wagon, Roland was laughing his tail off. "That's it, that's it! Keep driving!" he cackled. "What is wrong with police officers here!? Don't you realize that you're just endangering the lives of innocent civilians!? Ah-ha-ha-ha!"

Roland fired another grenade at the underside of the cruiser, causing it to flip when the round went off. "Yes!" Roland hissed with a smile. He squeezed the trigger again for the finishing blow, only to hear a click. "Oh well. He's as good as dead anyway," Roland muttered to himself. He pulled the grenade launcher back in and laid it across his lap. He reached over for his satellite phone and called up Maulia. " _Roland, what's up?_ " she asked. "I just bagged our target, along with his police escorts," Roland replied with a grin on his face.

" _What!? Dammit, I wanted to have fun with him first!_ " Maulia exclaimed. "Ha! You take too long. I got the job done and over with in the amount of time it would take you just to grab him," Roland retorted. " _Bastard. Are you sure that he's dead? Komo will want a body, or at least confirmation before paying us,_ " Maulia said, causing Roland to frown. "Shit," he muttered.

"We'll wait for a news report this evening, and hear what they have to say about the incident," Roland said. " _I doubt they'll release that kind of information. By the way, which police officers did you bag?_ " Maulia asked him. "The rabbit and the fox," Roland replied. The line was quiet for a minute, causing Roland to frown further. "Oi, Maulia, what's wrong?" Roland asked her.

" _Nothing. Roland. Nothing's wrong. Although, you may want to stay away from that snow district for the remainder of our stay,_ " Maulia replied. "What? What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Roland asked her. " _It means that you just killed someone with close ties to Zootopia's biggest crime boss. Imagine the fun we'll get to have now!_ " Zack said with a chuckle.

"Wait, one of those officers had ties to a crime boss? I thought the Zootopia police would have better hiring practices than that," Roland said with a shake of his head. " _It doesn't matter now. Just wait with us until nightfall, then we can ready to leave on Friday,_ " Maulia said. "Right. First, though, I gotta ditch my ride. I'll meet up with you guys at Kelso's place later tonight. Out," Roland said before turning the satellite phone off. "Now, where did I stash that body?" he asked himself as he made a turn off at the exit of the freeway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DUN DUN DUNN!
> 
> Will our trio survive!?
> 
> Is Clawhauser diabetic!?
> 
> Who will die this week on South Park!?
> 
> Find out next chapter!


	4. Judy And Nick's Bad Fur Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The answers to the post-chapter questions from the previous chapter are as follows:
> 
> Yes.
> 
> Not yet.
> 
> Miss Choksondik

Disclaimer: Disney of Property is Zootopia

* * *

**Judy and Nick's Bad Fur Day  
**

* * *

Date: Wednesday, May 25th, 2019 

Judy Hopps had experienced many life or death situations in her time as a ZPD officer. During her first three days on the job, she had almost gotten killed by a drugged panther and a crime boss in the same day, and several months later, she had almost died in a train wreck. About a year following that, she almost died in a high-speed chase, and a year after that, she almost got crushed by Officer McHorn when she sat in his chair by accident and fell asleep.

Right now, she had just survived another car crash, and she was hanging upside down thanks to her seat-belt. She craned her neck to see Nick, also upside down in his seat. "N-Nick?" she asked, concerned. "Nick? Nick! Nick!?" she began to cry out when she heard no response from him. "Nick, answer me! Nick, Nick!" Judy cried out.

"Please, answer me!" she begged as she unbuckled her seat-belt, only to feel pain shoot through her left arm. "No _pain_... no _gain_ ," she grunted to herself as she finished unbuckling the seat-belt. She twisted herself around and managed to crouch-walk over to Nick and unbuckle him. "Nick, speak to me! Please, Nick!" Judy begged. She heard him slur something. "Nick!" she cried with a smile as he groggily moaned. "My... head," Nick rasped. "Ouch."

Judy gasped and hugged him. "Oh, Nick! You're okay," she cried. "Tell that... to my spine," Nick quipped with a groan. "Wait... Mr. Albigul!" Judy cried out when she remembered the lizard. Looking back at the passenger section, she saw that the lizard had embedded his claws into the seat of the cruiser. He turned his head and looked at her worriedly. "Is it safe yet?" he asked her fearfully.

Judy was just about to answer him when she heard footsteps. "Hey, are you guys okay!?" asked a voice from around the side of the vehicle. Judy turned to see a zebra crouching down and looking at them. "We're alive, if that's what your asking," Judy replied. "You sure?" the zebra asked. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm sure," Judy replied.

* * *

**Later, Inside the Ambulance...**

"Well, you have a mild concussion, and a broken arm. Your spine seems fine, but we won't know for certain until we get to the hospital," the medic, a lioness, said to Nick as the ambulance made its way to the hospital. "Thanks, Doc, can I have some pain killers now?" Nick replied. The lioness snorted. "And you, Officer Hopps, have a sprained leg, as well as a bruised shoulder. You may not feel anything now, but give it a few hours," the lioness said. "What about Mr. Albigul?" Judy asked as the lioness's partner, a badger, checked out the lizard. "His skin's really scaly, and all of his fur is gone!" the badger cried out. "I'm a reptile. We don't have fur," Lawrence retorted.

"Oh... what are you doing outside of the outback area?" the badger asked him. "Can I please go back in the overturned cop car?" Lawrence asked as he turned to look at Judy and Nick. "No. You're coming with us back to the station, and then your security detail can pick you up there," Judy said.

"Are you sure that the cop car wouldn't be safer?" Lawrence asked her. "I'm positive," Judy said flatly, just before she heard Nick hissing in pain. She turned around to see the lioness bandaging his arm tightly. "I'm making sure that he doesn't move it and cause further injury," the lioness said.

"So, who was it that attacked us?" Nick asked. "One of Komo's hired guns," Lawrence answered somberly. "Now, we don't know for certain," Judy said. "It could have been unrelated to Mr. Albigul. I mean, the windows in the cruiser were tinted, and there was no way for the driver of that car to see that Mr. Albigul was in there with us," Judy explained.

Nick looked at her thoughtfully. "You may have a point there, but how did that wallaby get ahold of a grenade launcher? That's not something a civilian is supposed to have in their possession," Nick said. "It was one of Komo's guys," Lawrence said firmly. "I'm sure of it."

"Have you seen that wallaby before?" Judy asked Lawrence. "No, not him, but I know that Mr. Domo doesn't limit his associates to being strictly within his own species. When I saw the... murder, he had two dingoes with him, along with two other dragons," Lawrence explained.

"Dingoes?" Judy asked him. "Yeah," Lawrence nodded. "There was a report of a suspicious person at Central Station on Monday, and that person was a dingo," Judy said. "There's no evidence linking that dingo sighting to this, but there is a slight chance that they're related," Judy said out loud.

"We need to talk to Bogo when we get to the hospital," Judy said. "Couldn't you have reported in after the crash?" Nick asked her. "I was busy making sure that you were okay," Judy said. "And anyway, the cord for the radio got damaged during the crash. I don't know where the replacement equipment is located," she added.

"When we get to the hospital, you can call the precinct and let them know about your situation," the lioness said. "Wait... don't you cops have shoulder radios and stuff?" Lawrence asked them. Looking down at their shoulders, both officers groaned at their apparent shared stupidity. "Mr. Albigul... please stop talking," Nick asked him. "The last time I did that, I got abducted without anyone noticing," Lawrence said with a frown.

"That wallaby, though, how could he be one of Komo's men if he's a Zootopian citizen? I saw his driver's license. George L. Rosen, age thirty-one," Judy said. "Maybe that wasn't a real license," Nick said. "I've seen a lot of fake ID's in my time on the streets," he explained. "Anyway, let's call dispatch," Nick said with a sigh.

* * *

Roland Long-Hopp carefully propped the body of George L. Rosen upright in the driver's seat of the green station wagon. "Come on, get your seat-belt on. It's dangerous to drive without one," Roland said with a smirk as he fastened the seat-belt around the corpse. "Now, let's make sure that your driver's license is in proper order," Roland said as he pulled George's license out of his wallet.

"We need to change that picture of yours, though," Roland said. He sniffed the air and grimaced. "You also need a bath," he muttered to the corpse. Setting up the empty beer bottle in the cup holder in the central console, Roland checked his bags to make sure that he hadn't left anything in the car that could be traced back to him.

With a satisfied grin, Roland closed the door of the car, keeping the window up and then got into the passenger side, turning on the ignition and making sure that a spare beer bottle was on the floor on the driver's side. He made sure to wash George's mouth with beer and poor some down the corpse's throat for authenticity. "Okay, let's go for a drive," Roland said as he pushed George's feet down on the gas and held them there before putting the car in cruise control.

* * *

Wilbur McKenzie watched the news report on the freeway chase with disgust. "Idiot," he muttered under his breath. "Doesn't anyone know anything about subtlety?" he asked himself as he glared at the TV. "Ooh! Chase scene!" Zack exclaimed as he watched the report on the TV in the bar. "The status of the officers involved in the attack remains undisclosed at this time," the reporter said.

"We'll have to wait another day or so," Wilbur said quietly. He knew that Zack and Maulia could hear him without having to raise his voice. "The attacker's identity remains unknown at this time, although one witness said that a glimpse into the driver's seat allowed them to see a kangaroo or a wallaby. No other features could be made out due to the speed at which the vehicle was moving."

"Roland screwed up," Maulia whispered. "Let's not jump to conclusions. As likely as it is, we still need to wait for a full disclosure to be released by the police before we know anything for certain," Wilbur whispered back to her. "Right. Let's hope that doesn't take too long," Maulia replied.

* * *

**Later That Night, at the Precinct...**

"Let's get this straight," Chief Bogo said as he looked at Judy and Nick, both of whom were sitting on either side of Lawrence Albigul. "You believe that the attacker was a wallaby that you pulled over this morning for speeding?" Bogo asked Judy. "Yes. He had the same exact vehicle, and he was the same-" "Species?" Bogo finished for her.

"Officer Hopps, you stated that the identity of your attacker is one George L. Rosen, correct?" Bogo asked her. "Well, yes. That was the name on his license," Judy said. "License? You checked his driver's license?" Bogo asked her. "Yes, when I pulled him over for speeding this morning," Judy replied.

"Officer Hopps, George L. Rosen has been missing since clocking out from work yesterday afternoon. His wife came by earlier today to report him missing," Bogo said. "Which means that the wallaby driving his car probably stole it," Lawrence said. "Mr. Albigul, when I give you permission to speak, you may do so," Bogo said in a calm, yet peeved manner.

"Wait, if the wallaby I pulled over had stolen the car, why did he have Mr. Rosen's license?" Judy asked. "Because... Mr. Rosen is probably dead," Lawrence said. "Dead? But... wait... that smell from inside the car," Judy said as everything clicked into place. "That was the smell of a dead body," she said in realization.

"Great," Bogo muttered sarcastically. "Just what I needed, a homicide and attempted murder in one day." "Sir, out of curiosity, where are Whittaker and Chaney right now?" Judy asked the buffalo. "They're doing paperwork right now. _Lots_ of paperwork," Bogo said, leaving the explanation at that.

"Um, also out of curiosity, where's my security detail? You know, the 'roos, the goanna, and the dingo?" Lawrence asked. "You'll be released back into their custody tomorrow morning. Until then, you'll be staying overnight inside the station, where you can't be abducted by prejudiced neighbors," Bogo replied. "I still don't understand how that happened," the cape buffalo muttered to himself.

"It was quite easy. They just grabbed me and-" "I don't care," Bogo interjected. Lawrence looked at him questioningly. "What I mean is that I don't care to listen to what you have to say. I do care about the fact that you were abducted, but that's as far as my concern goes," Bogo explained.

" _Chief,_ " the voice of Clawhauser spoke over the intercom, " _Grizzoli and Fangmeyer have reported that they've found the suspect's car. The green one from the freeway incident,_ " Clawhauser said. "Very good, Clawhauser. Have them bring it in," Bogo said. " _T_ _hat's going to be difficult. The car needs to be towed. They found it crashed into a tree on the side of the road,_ " Clawhauser said.

"And the driver?" Bogo asked. " _Dead. They found empty bottles of beer in the car, and his breath reeks of it,_ " Clawhauser said. "Did they say what species the driver is?" Bogo asked over the intercom. " _It's a wallaby, male,_ " Clawhauser replied. "I see. Send forensics out there immediately. I want the scene closed off," Bogo said. " _Right away, Chief,_ " Clawhauser said.

"Well, it seems that our suspect may have killed himself in a premature drunken celebration over your supposed deaths," Bogo said. "Either that, or he wants to throw us off his trail," Lawrence said. "Let's not jump to conclusions until we have all of the facts," Bogo said. "I understand that you don't want to take the risk of thinking you're in the clear prematurely, but assuming the worst immediately doesn't help anyone either," he added.

"So, should Hopps and I go home then?" Nick asked. "No. Both of you will stay overnight, and I'll give you some time to return to your individual homes and change into clean uniforms tomorrow," Bogo said. "Yay, I've always wanted to have a sleepover," Nick said sarcastically.

* * *

Date: Thursday, May 26th, 2019 

Judy Hopps opened her eyes groggily before taking in her surroundings. She wasn't in her bed, which immediately put her on alert, until she looked around and saw that she was on a bench in the police station. She sighed in relief as she clutched Nick's tail closer around her. _Wait_... Looking down, Judy saw that Nick's tail was curled around her, as was most of his uniformed body.

 _No wonder I felt warm... and safe_ , Judy thought to herself with a small smile. Taking the rest of her surroundings into account, Judy saw that Lawrence Albigul was sleeping on another bench with a blanket wrapped around him. Realizing how compromising her position with Nick was, Judy gently tried to wake him up, hopefully before someone else entered the room.

Unknown to Judy, however, Clawhauser and Bogo had both already entered the room earlier to check on them while they were still asleep. Both males had agreed to take pictures of the two officers and keep their mouths shut. "It doesn't prove anything. I haven't lost the bet yet," Bogo had said to the cheetah, who had merely rolled his eyes in response.

Now, three hours later, Judy was gently and delicately attempting to extricate herself from Nick's tail and arms. " _Nick_ ," she whispered, " _We have to get up, before someone sees us. **Please**._ " Nick merely folded himself inward, wrapping his limbs around her even more.

Judy heard a snicker and looked up to see Lawrence staring at them. "It's not what you think," Judy said, blushing profusely. "Sure it isn't, and I don't have a crime boss sending assassins after me," Lawrence replied with a chortle. "I guess anyone really _can_ be anything here in Zootopia," he added with a snicker.

"Nick, please, we have to get up," Judy pleaded before looking at the lizard. "Not a word," she whispered to Lawrence, who merely rolled his eyes and got off the bench. "Oi, you work here, right?" he asked Judy, who nodded her head. "The closest bathroom on this floor is just down the hall and to the left, isn't it? Or is it to the right?" Lawrence asked her. "I don't think walking around by yourself is the best idea at the moment," Judy replied.

"You know, considering everything that's happened so far, you may be right about that," Lawrence said thoughtfully. "Ugh," Nick groaned as he slowly came to. "Oh, finally!" Judy exclaimed. "Huh, what?" Nick asked groggily before he looked down. _Dreams do come true_ , he thought to himself as he saw a blushing Judy in his arms. He then looked over and saw Lawrence staring at him.

"Uh... hi," Nick said. "Hi. If I had a camera, could I blackmail one of you to escort me to the bathroom right now?" Lawrence asked them. "What?" Nick asked, confused. He then remembered that he was still curled around Judy. "Oh. Uh, s-sorry, Carrots," Nick apologized. "Just get up already," she said, still blushing.

Nick carefully uncurled himself from around her and stretched, giving Judy a chance to hop off the bench and stretch herself as well. "What time is it?" Nick asked as he sat up and got off the bench. Judy looked up at the clock on the wall. "It's eleven thirty!" she exclaimed.

"What!?" Nick asked her in disbelief. "We're so late! We're late! We're late!" Judy exclaimed. "Yes, you're late. And I'll be late for a very important date with the bathroom soon if I don't get out of here," Lawrence said. "Fine! Nick, take Mr. Albigul to the bathroom," Judy said. "Sure," Nick replied with a yawn.

"Come on," Nick said as he walked over to the door. "Time to irritate Bogo by not being here when he checks in on us," he added with a wry smile. "All you have to do is tell me where the bathroom is. I can make my way there on my own," Lawrence said. "You think you're the only one who needs to empty their bladder right now?" Nick asked him. Lawrence sighed and followed the fox down the hallway.

* * *

**Bamboo Palace Asian Restaurant, Downtown Zootopia**

Wilbur looked up from his plate of noodles as he saw Roland enter the restaurant. He beckoned the wallaby over to his table. "So," Wilbur began, "I was wondering when you'd get back from wherever it was you had to be." "I had to run a few errands," Roland said. "So, you never did tell us what kept you so long last night," Wilbur said.

"I told you; I had to ditch the... car," Roland said quietly. "Uh-huh. And how'd that go?" Wilbur asked before taking another forkful of noodles into his mouth. "It went flawlessly," Roland said with a grin. "Is that so?" Wilbur asked him.

"Yes, it is," Roland said with a smug smirk. "So, the police won't try to find you through some other means after they find the car?" Wilbur asked him quietly, glancing around to make sure that no one was paying attention to them. "I made sure they had a body," Roland said quietly, just as a waitress walked over to take his order.

"May I have a menu, please?" Roland asked politely. After completing his job, Roland was feeling quite satisfied with himself. "Sure, just let me get one for you," the waitress, a young cheetah, said before walking over to a podium and retrieving a menu from a cupboard underneath it. She returned quickly and handed him the menu.

"Would you like anything to drink?" she asked him. "Just water, thank you," Roland said as he flipped open the menu. "Take a look at what they have before makin' a decision," Wilbur said to him. "I like water," Roland retorted. "It doesn't hurt to live a little. Maybe get a soda or something," Wilbur said.

"That stuff runs right through me," Roland said. The waitress fidgeted as she waited to see if Roland was sure of his decision. "I'll have water, thank you," he told the waitress with a smile. She nodded her head and smiled back at him before walking away. "So, where are the dogs?" Roland asked Wilbur quietly.

"They're checking out some resort or casino not too far away from their hotel," Wilbur said. "I can only imagine the kind of trouble that they'll get into there," Roland said. "Personally, I'd rather not," Wilbur said, just before the waitress returned and set a glass of water on the table in front of Roland, providing him with a straw.

"Here you go. Have you found what you want, or are you still deciding?" she asked him. "I'll have the sesame tofu noodle plate," Roland said. "Got it. Would you like anything else?" she asked him. "No, that's all," Roland said as he handed her the menu. "Okay. Your order will be ready in about ten to fifteen minutes," the waitress said before walking away.

"So, you left a body in the car," Wilbur said quietly. "Where'd you get it?" he asked. "From the car," Roland replied. Wilbur stopped eating his noodles and glared at Roland. "Roland, I think you know better than to do that," Wilbur said disapprovingly.

"Hey, I needed fake ID. It all worked out in the end, didn't it?" Roland replied quietly as he took a sip of his water. "You youngsters. Back in my day, we only took out the target and witnesses, no one else," Wilbur muttered quietly. "Back in your day? Please, you're only ten years older than me," Roland scoffed. "Which makes it all the more shocking just how quickly things have deteriorated," Wilbur sniped.

"You think you're so wise," Roland said with disdain. "Fine. What else did you leave in the car?" Wilbur asked the wallaby. "Two empty beer bottles, a bottle opener, some shell casings, the empty grenade launcher and half-full SMG," Roland replied quietly. Wilbur's eyes widened. "And how long until they find your paw prints?" Wilbur asked him.

"That's the beautiful part," Roland said. "I used gloves the whole time. I put the handles in the dead guy's hands when I had the chance, to leave _his_ paw prints on them instead of mine. I put 'em all over the damn guns, and the duffle bag, and the beer bottles," Roland said smugly.

"What about your feet?" Wilbur asked him. "I had footwear on," Roland said. "The only footprints in that car are the dead guy's," he added. "Well, you certainly covered your tracks, I'll give you that," Wilbur said before he resumed eating. "Oh yeah. When the police look for clues, everything will point to the wallaby who died after he drunkenly crashed his car," Roland said confidently.

"Well, I hope your plan works. Now you just have to make sure that the target is dead," Wilbur said. Roland frowned. "Of course he's dead. With the way that cruiser flipped, he had to have broken his neck or at least suffered a major concussion," Roland said quietly.

"Well, you'll need to do some recon work today to make sure," Wilbur said. "Or you could just wait to watch the news report or find something online," he added. "Either way, it ain't over just yet." "Of course not," Roland noted sourly. "Now, when we're finished eating, how about we go do that recon I just mentioned. Or at least, do some more spying on the safe house," Wilbur suggested, keeping his voice low.

"So, that rabbit I may or may not have killed," Roland said quietly, "I hear that she has connections to the mob?" "Rumors, nothing confirmed, and I honestly don't care," Wilbur replied. "Why do you care anyway? We'll be out of here by tomorrow night or Saturday," Wilbur said. "Well, I think she saw my face. Her and the fox both," Roland explained.

"Yeah, you fucked up," Wilbur said bluntly. "Well, I did my research on her identity, and I found out her name and place of address. She lives-or lived in an apartment in Grand Pangolin Arms," Roland said. "What are you going to do; ambush her inside her own home?" Wilbur asked.

"Something like that. If the news reports her as dead, then I'll leave a tip for the ZPD that there was suspicious activity at that apartment. And if she isn't dead, then she'll have a nice little surprise waiting for her," Roland said. "What about the fox?" Wilbur asked him. "Who cares about the fox? Most people in this city don't seem to trust foxes, and I doubt most of them will care if their one fox cop lives or dies anyway," Roland said.

"I have to admit, that is kind of sad; to see such outlooks in an otherwise progressive place like this," Wilbur said. "Well, aren't you poetic?" Roland sneered. "Well, philosophy and poetry were some of my favorite subjects in school," Wilbur said. "You're kidding, right?" Roland asked him. Wilbur ignored the wallaby and continued eating his food.

* * *

**Zootopia Police Department, Precinct One**

"Now, how exactly do we explain what happened to Chief Rockatansky?" Bogo asked out loud as he glared at Lieutenant Matheson. "I-I don't... it wasn't intentional," Matheson stammered out. "You're not doing us any favors, Matheson," Spencer said. "I was just... trying to get him some fresh air. I didn't want him to feel cooped up and then try to sneak out later on his own," Elizabeth Matheson said.

"Should we change safe-house locations, Chief Bogo?" Spencer asked. "Did the neighbors responsible for this discover the the safe house?" Bogo asked. "I don't know exactly when they took him, so I don't know if they saw us walking up to the house or not," Matheson said guiltily. "Lieutenant Matheson," Chief Bogo said. Matheson perked her ears up.

"You are operating under my jurisdiction of authority. Type up a report on this incident and send it to Chief Rockatansky in Reptaelia. Whittaker and Chaney already typed up their reports last night, and I'll have Hopps and Wilde type up theirs later today. But I want to read your report as well, and I will be adding my own, to make sure that all parties involved have explained the situation," Bogo said firmly.

"But, sir, this case is still technically Reptaelian jurisdiction, perhaps-" "Save it," Bogo interjected. "When you used one of our safe houses and got my officers involved, it became my concern and part of my jurisdiction. Prepare your report," Bogo said, just before he heard knocking on the door. "Come in," he said.

The door opened and Judy Hopps stepped inside. "H-Hello, Chief," Judy said. "Hopps. Have you returned home yet?" Bogo asked her. "N-No, Sir," Judy replied. "I would suggest that you do so," Bogo said. "But, Sir. I-" "Hopps, you need to go home and put on a clean uniform," Bogo said. "You smell like smoke and gun powder," he added.

"Oh," Judy said with surprise. "Yes Sir!" Judy then said with a salute before turning around and hurrying down the hallway. "Now, back to-" There was another knock on the door. "Yes?" Bogo asked. The door opened and Nick stepped inside. "Um, Chief, where should Mr. Albigul stay right now?" he asked the buffalo.

"Bring him in here. His security detail has arrived," Bogo said. "You heard him," Nick said. Lawrence Albigul walked into the room and sat down on a chair. Matheson looked at him before turning her head away. "Hey, Chief, have you seen Car-I mean, Officer Hopps anywhere?" Nick asked. "She just left to go home and change into a clean uniform mere seconds before you got here.  I don't know how you could've missed her.  Either way, I'd suggest that you go home and get cleaned up too," Bogo said.

"Gotcha'. Oh, are Hopps and I still on for lizard guarding duty today?" Nick asked him. "Yes. Now go get cleaned up," Bogo said. "Right away, Sir," Nick said with an annoying salute. Bogo let out an annoyed huff before returning his attention to the lizard and the dingo. "Now, where was I?"

* * *

**Grand Pangolin Arms Apartment Complex...**

As soon as Judy reached her apartment, she felt that something was off. Attributing this feeling to the general awkwardness of how and where she'd woken up, she made her way up the stairs, climbing several floors before reaching her own. Usually, any time she was here, she'd hear her neighbors, Bucky and Pronk, loudly arguing or yelling about something.

Today, however, the apartment was quiet. It was odd not hearing those two making any kind of noise, and the lack of it put Judy on edge as she crept up the stairs before hitting the landing to her floor. Carefully turning a corner, Judy saw her neighbors standing outside her door. Pronk was kneeling in front of the door while Bucky was standing as a lookout. "Bucky? Pronk? What are you guys doing here?" Judy asked them.

"We live here," Bucky replied. "That's not what she meant, idiot!" Pronk admonished his mate. "Um, well, he's kind of right. What I mean is, why are you outside my door and-hey, are you picking the lock!?" Judy asked him. "We heard someone sneaking around in here earlier. At first we thought it was you, but we threw that out the window when we didn't hear any Gazelle or other pop music playing," Pronk said as he continued trying to pick the lock.

"Yeah. We didn't hear you come back last night, but this morning, we heard the door open in a weird way and there was some strange shuffling going on. Whoever it was didn't speak, but we heard things being lifted, like maybe they were burgling your room," Bucky said. "Yeah, so we're trying to see what they took, and maybe find some clues to help you find them," Pronk said.

"Oh, well... thank you, for your concern, but you should have called me to tell me, or perhaps called the ZPD to let them know," Judy said. "We don't know your phone number," Bucky said as he walked over to lean down to Judy's eye level. "I missed again. Hey, Buck, could you perhaps take Judy down stairs so that I can concentrate better?" Pronk asked. "Between you and me, I think it was Dharma, the landlady," Bucky whispered into Judy's ears.

"Look, why don't I just give you my room keys and-" "Got it!" Pronk announced excitedly as he stood up. "Told you I could do it," Pronk said with a smirk as he turned to look at Bucky. "Fine, you proved me wrong. Now just open the door so that we investigate," Bucky said in a slightly annoyed tone. Pronk turned the knob and pulled the door open. "Don't be such a-" _**BOOOOOOMMM!**_

The entire room exploded, engulfing Pronk in flame and light, and sending Judy and Bucky sprawling back into the wall. Debris showered the hallway as parts of the wall exploded and shrapnel was sent everywhere. Pronk and Judy held their ears and cried out in surprise and pain as they were showered with wood and heat.

A few minutes passed, with Judy holding her ears in pain, crying out. "J-Judy," Bucky groaned as he tried to check her over. "Judy!? Dammit!" Bucky cried out. "Hey, someone call nine-one-one!" Bucky called out. He then saw Judy's phone sticking out of her pocket. He grabbed it and dialed 911, informing them of the explosion at Grand Pangolin Arms.

After ending the call, Bucky looked down at Judy, before looking up at the scorched remains of the hallway. "P-Pronk? Pronk!? Pronk!" Bucky called out. "Pronk, answer me! Pronk!" he continued to call out. There was no response. There never would be again. Bucky soon cried out in anguish at this realization, his cries almost as deafening as the explosion, at least for Judy's sensitive ears, until the paramedics and firefighters found them curled up in the hallway near the top of the stairs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stay tuned, and remember, there's more destruction and mayhem to come!
> 
> And once again, this story was written while listening to the soundtracks for the Lethal Weapon films, the first three Die Hard films, and the two Gremlins films.


	5. New Living Arrangements

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With her apartment destroyed, Judy stays with Nick for the night, only to discover that the feelings she harbors for him are mutual.

Disclaimer: Zootopia is property of Disney.

* * *

**New Living Arrangements**

* * *

Date: Thursday, May 26th, 2019 

Judy could still feel her ear drums ringing from the explosion earlier. The paramedic, the same lioness from yesterday, looked her over. "Two near-death experiences in as many days. You must be really popular with someone," the lioness said. "Now, I'm going to say a number, and I want you to repeat it, or at least hold up your fingers to show me that heard me," the lioness said.

"Do you understand?" she asked Judy. "Yeah," Judy said. "Okay. Three," the lioness said. Judy raised her paw and held up three digits. "Seven." Judy held up both paws, with one thumb down. "Two," the lioness said. Judy lowered a paw and two digits on her other paw.

"Good. Your hearing is only slightly impaired, but I'd recommend using some ear-plugs or at least keeping them protected for another day or two. The ringing will subside in a few hours, hopefully. "You sure it won't take longer?" Judy asked her, her voice somewhat high in pitch.

"Well, you were pretty close to the blast," the lioness said. "Hey, Nala, if you're done with the rabbit, I need some help with the kudu. He's stopped crying, but now he's unresponsive. I've got a blanket on him to stave off shock, but I need your expertise; I'm no good at consoling people," the badger said. "I'll be right there," Nala said. "Stay here," she told Judy before walking off.

Judy looked around and saw the other animals who had been hurt by the blast, including a capybara who an EMT was zipping up into a body bag, an otter who had a broken arm and leg, three muskrats who were huddled together, and a deer who was also being zipped into a body bag. Judy turned her head and saw two EMT's performing CPR and placing a breathing apparatus on a female impala. "We're losing her!" one of them shouted.

Who? Who could have done this, and why? Judy was brought out of her thoughts when she heard the police sirens and saw three squad cars pull up. Judy saw Fangmeyer and Grizzoli step out of one car and retrieve police barricades out of the trunk. Out of the second car stepped Anderson, a polar bear, and Johnson, a lion. They also retrieved police barricades. Out of the third car stepped Chief Bogo and Sergeant Burns, a tiger. "Officer Hopps," Bogo said as he approached her.

"Chief, what are you doing here?" Judy asked him as he approached her. "Hopps, what happened?" Bogo asked her, ignoring her question. "My room... it just exploded when one of my neighbors, Pronk, he-Pronk!" Judy gasped, remembering that the oryx had been standing right at the door. "He-He..." Judy felt tears begin to well up in her eyes. "Officer Hopps, please, try to tell me what happened," Bogo said. "Pronk... opened the door, and then he-he was gone," Judy said.

"He... he and Bucky said... they said they heard someone breaking into my apartment earlier," Judy said. "They-they were trying to get inside and find out what was going on... and-and then, Pronk opened the door and..." Judy just pointed up at the billowing smoke coming out of the side of the apartment complex as the firefighters finished taking care of the fires.

"Someone... broke into your apartment?" Bogo asked her. "That's... that's what Bucky and Pronk told me," Judy said tearfully. A look of alarm flashed across Bogo's face. "Burns, contact Officer Wilde, now!" Bogo ordered the tiger. "C-Chief?" Judy asked him. "If your neighbors were correct, then this was a deliberate action. Someone was targeting you, and Wilde may also be in danger," Bogo explained.

"I can't get him on the radio," Burns said. "H-Here, use my phone," Judy said, handing her cell phone to Bogo. He took the phone gently in his paws and scrolled down Judy's contact list before tapping on the number for Nick's phone. He waited for the phone to ring twice before he heard the sound of it picking up. " _Carrots, what's up?_ " Nick asked from the other end.

"Wilde," Bogo said. " _Chief? What are you doing with Judy-I mean Hopps's phone?_ " Nick asked him. "Officer Wilde, where are you right now?" Bogo asked. " _I'm in my apartment. I just got out of the shower a minute ago. Why? Has something happened?_ " Nick asked. "Officer Hopps's apartment was destroyed today by a massive explosion. We have reason to believe it was a deliberate act," Bogo said.

" _Oh my god. Judy! Is she okay!? Where is she!?_ " Nick asked, concern evident in his voice. "Officer Hopps is alive and intact, medically speaking," Bogo said. "We're outside the apartment complex and having the area sealed off from the general public. Wilde, I want you to check your home and search for anything out of the ordinary. If you find anything, call the station or the bomb squad immediately. That's an order," Bogo said.

" _Understood. How's Judy?_ " Nick replied. "Officer Hopps is alive, as I said earlier. However, she is going to need a place to stay for a while. She'll be staying at the station until we can figure out living arrangements," Bogo replied. " _She could stay with-_ " "Wilde, do not make that offer until your apartment has been thoroughly checked and declared safe," Bogo interjected. " _Right. I'll get on that right away,_ " Nick said on the other end.

"Good. And Wilde? Keep your eyes and ears open. We don't know who did this, or where they are currently. I'm going to send McHorn and Woolsworth to pick you up and help you check your apartment," Bogo said. " _I... I understand. I'll see you at the station later, Sir. Bye,_ " Nick said before hanging up. "Burns, get me Mchorn and Woolsworth," Bogo said. "Right away," Burns said.

* * *

**A Few Hours Later...**

Wilbur and Roland watched the TV in their hotel room with mild interest. "The investigation into the cause of the explosion is still ongoing, and authorities have yet to say if the explosion was an accident or a deliberate action," the news anchor said. "So," Wilbur began, "How exactly does this keep the police off your tail?" "Oops," Roland said nonchalantly.

"You idiot!" Wilbur snapped at him. "We still don't know if your stunt on the freeway eliminated our target, and this little incident is going to make the police even more alert than before. If our target isn't dead yet, the police are going to be guarding him twenty-four-seven, and it'll be almost impossible to get to him," Wilbur said.

Roland rolled his eyes at the angry koala. "You may think that Bandit and Barbaros are bad at their job, but at least they never caused a loud incident like this!" Wilbur exclaimed before walking over to the door. "Where are you going?" Roland asked him. "I need some fresh air. I'm also gonna do some scouting and find out if our target is still alive. Don't follow me," Wilbur said gruffly before closing the door behind him.

* * *

**Zootopia Police Department, Precinct One**

Inside Chief Bogo's office in the ZPD HQ, Judy and Nick stood in front of the aforementioned cape buffalo as he took a deep breath to calm himself. "Okay, we've had two incidents in the past two days. The first incident was clearly an attempt to get at Mr. Albigul, but this one... this was a deliberate action targeting _you_ , Hopps. Someone, either the wallaby who attacked you on the freeway, or another party, has made an attempt on your life," Bogo said. "Right now, we're keeping as much information as possible away from the media. No details on who was where, or anything like that. And, of course... you need a place to stay," Bogo said before his eyes drifted over to Nick's form.

"Officer Wilde, since your home has been declared safe, I'm going to recommend that Officer Hopps stay with you until a new residence can be found for her," Bogo said. Nick nodded his head. "Uh, what about her uniforms?" Nick asked. "What about them?" Bogo replied. "Well, I'm guessing that most of her other uniforms were destroyed in the blast, and mine are too big for her to borrow," Nick said. "He's right," Judy chimed in. "The only uniform I have left is the one that I'm wearing right now," she added.

"We'll requisition some new ones for you tomorrow. Also, I want both of you to take the rest of the day and tomorrow off," Bogo said. "But, Sir, what about Mr. Albigul?" Judy asked him. "He'll be staying at the safe house with his security detail. We'll also have two more officers assigned to watch over the place at night, and two officers will be assigned to watch Officer Wilde's residence until we can figure out more about what's going on," Bogo said.

"Hold on, I thought that the wallaby who attacked us was dead. His paw prints and fur where found all over those weapons in the car," Nick said. "DNA evidence found on the weapons and other materials inside of the crashed vehicle do point to Mr. Rosen being the perpetrator, but today's incident may suggest that we have more than one animal going after Mr. Albigul. Mr. Rosen may have been but one member of a larger group of individuals. Testimony from Officer Hopps's neighbor, Bucky Oryx-Antlerson, indicating that the breaking and entering occurred _after_ the crashed car and body were found, suggests as much. We won't know for certain, however, until the investigation is complete," Bogo said.

"If that's true, then is it really such a good idea to send him back to the safe house?" Nick asked. "We don't have any other place to keep him, and the Reptaelian security team have already finished setting up their security systems. It is currently the safest place for Mr. Albigul at this time," Bogo replied.

"Chief, with all due respect, we still have our shift to-" "Save it, Hopps. You've been through two near-death experiences in two days. You and Wilde both need time to recuperate and process everything," Bogo said, cutting her off. Judy's ears drooped. "Officer Hopps, believe me, you need this," Bogo said firmly.

"I understand, Chief," Judy said forlornly. "Wilde, take her ho-I mean, to your place of residence and get her cleaned up," Bogo said before turning to look at Judy. "You still smell like smoke, Hopps, and I already ordered you to take care of that," he said, with the tiniest hint of a wry smile on his face. It was only there for a few seconds, but Judy saw it clearly.

She nodded her head in understanding. "Yes, Sir," she said with a curt salute. "Good. Now, get out of my office," Bogo said as the two officers walked away. After the door closed, he leaned back against his desk and sighed. "I'm going to have an aneurysm before the week is over," he muttered quietly to himself.

* * *

**UNI-WORLD Shipping Company HQ, Outskirts of Sygnalia, Reptaelia**

Komo Domo read the news report on his computer before closing his eyes and sighing in frustration. _How can a trained assassin fuck up this badly?_ Komo had seen Roland Long-Hopp's handiwork plenty of times in the past. He was Komo's number one explosives expert, but the wallaby was proving himself to be lacking when in an unfamiliar environment such as Zootopia, if his current actions were any indication.

 _Perhaps I should not have given them such a tight deadline_ , Komo thought to himself as he picked up a satellite phone and dialed the number that he had given to Roland. After a few minutes, the wallaby picked up. " _Boss?_ " the wallaby asked. "Hello, Roland. I just read a very interesting news report on my computer. Now, I know that some papers like to rush their stories to beat everyone else, but after looking at the address of the building that you blew up today, I learned about who resided there," Komo said.

" _Boss, I can explain. It was insurance, basically,_ " Roland said. "No, Roland. _You_ need to understand. Your _target_ is the _lizard_ , not some rabbit police officer! Do you understand? If you want to target her, then you do so _after_ you have taken care of your assignment, and not a moment sooner. Otherwise, your share of the pay is _forfeit_. Do you understand that? I gave you a simple assignment. Track down and kill the lizard," Komo said, agitated.

"And what do you do? You decide to go chasing after some police officer, and without my permission! You've almost blown your cover! When I give you an assignment, one that you're being _paid for_ , I expect you to follow that assignment, Roland. Otherwise... things are going to be decidedly _unpleasant_ for you when you return," Komo warned.

" _I... I understand, Komo. It won't happen again. I'll focus strictly on Mr. Albigul until I'm certain that he is dead,_ " Roland replied. "Good. Now, do you know for certain if the lizard is dead?" Komo asked him. " _There hasn't been any word yet on whether anyone survived the car crash. We're waiting for the news report before we start trying to pry into the police themselves,_ " Roland replied.

"And whose idea is that?" Komo asked. " _Wilbur's, sir,_ " Roland replied. "Wilbur, huh? That koala's got a good head on his shoulders. I suggest that you listen to him. You might live longer," Komo said with a smirk. " _I understand sir. Does this mean that Wilbur is in charge of the team?_ " Roland asked. "No, but seeing how he is the most senior of all of you, I expect you to take his advice when he gives it, or at least pay it some heed," Komo said.

" _Of course,_ " Roland replied. "Now, be a good boy, and make sure that the lizard is dead. Can you do that? Because if you come back without completing your assignment... I think you can figure out the rest. I have a very large coke shredder inside one of my Outback facilities. I've always been curious as to what coke tastes like when mixed with blood," Komo said.

Komo heard a faint gulp on the other end of the line. "Bye, Roland. I expect you to call me when the assignment's been completed. Take care," Komo said with a smile that, had Roland seen it, would have caused the wallaby to shit his pants. Komo leaned back in his chair and sighed. "Should've just sent Wilbur alone. The whole thing would've been done and over with in three days tops, and no major headlines," the Komodo dragon said to himself.

* * *

**East Savannah Apartments**

When Nick opened the door to his apartment, he looked inside before turning to look at Judy, who had a look of trepidation on her face. "I know it isn't a five star hotel, but surely you can't be too disappointed," Nick joked. Judy looked up at him. "Sorry. I'm just... tired," Judy said as she stepped inside. Nick followed her and quickly locked the door.

"You know where the shower is," Nick said. "I'll see if I can scrounge up some smaller clothes from one of your previous visits as my sexy nurse," Nick said humorously. Judy wanted to laugh, but she couldn't find it in herself to do so. The image of Pronk being turned into a roast continued to flood her mind, as did the various other innocents who ended up being placed in body bags.

When she got into the shower and felt the warm water hit her fur, Judy felt relaxed for a few seconds. She then began to laugh, before she was overcome by the need to cry. Her sobs tore through the apartment, causing Nick to enter the bathroom and kneel down next to her, pulling her into a hug as she cried into his chest He decided to ignore the fact that his uniform was getting soaked. Comforting Judy was far more important. "That's it, Carrots. Just let it all out," he whispered soothingly to her as she continued to sob.

"I-I couldn't save them! I-I couldn't... I couldn't... why!?" Judy sobbed as Nick held her closer and tighter. "It's okay. I'm here. I'm not leaving you," Nick whispered to her, caressing her head gently. Judy continued to sob until her throat was sore. "Do you want me to help you get cleaned up?" Nick asked her.

Judy nodded her head with a sigh, feeling exhausted. It was as if everything from the past two days had finally caught up with her. Nick slowly stood up and grabbed some soap before bending back down to help lather Judy's body. He took a sniff of her quickly. Chief Bogo was right; she really did smell like smoke, not to mention various other things that came with two days of not having a shower or a bath.

After he finished cleaning Judy, Nick stripped out of his now completely soaked clothes and set them aside to put in the washer. He gave himself a brief rinse before shutting off the shower and drying off, helping Judy as well. When he was done, he saw that Judy was staring off into the distance, breathing quietly.

"Hey, Carrots? What do you say we order some takeout from your favorite place?" Nick offered as he kneeled down in front of her. "Sure. Sounds good," Judy said with a sigh. "Judy... we'll get through this, together," Nick said as he looked her straight in the eyes. Judy nodded her head, not quite agreeing with him, but not having the energy to argue either. "Now, which place was your favorite for takeout?" Nick asked her with a grin.

When Judy didn't answer, Nick sighed. "Well, I guess I'll just have to order from my favorite place and eat it all by myself. Who knows, I might get to be as large as Clawhauser if I have everything to myself," Nick joked. Judy lifted the corner of her lips slightly. "Carrots... _Judy_ ," Nick said, getting her attention.

"Don't beat yourself up over this. It wasn't your fault. You couldn't have known what would happen, and there was no way to warn your neighbors," Nick said as he crouched down and put a hand on each of her shoulders. "Judy, if we want to find the people responsible for this, then we have to stay alive and alert. Do you want these guys to get away with what they've done?"

"No," Judy replied. "Well, they _will_ get away if you keep moping around and blaming yourself for something that wasn't your fault. _They_ did this, not you," Nick said firmly. "And we're gonna get 'em. We stopped Bellwether from tearing apart the city, and we brought Lisker and the others to justice, remember? We're going to bring these guys to justice too. Those people from your apartment complex deserve it, and not just them, but everyone that this Komo guy and his cronies have hurt and killed," he said.

Judy's eyes lit up as he continued talking, his words starting to get through to her. "We're going to keep Mr. Albigul alive, and we're going to make sure that he helps send these monsters behind bars for the rest of their lives," Nick said, his eyes piercing right into Judy's very sense of being. "Are you with me?" he asked her. _Always. I always have been, and I always will be_ , Judy thought to herself.

Judy smiled and nodded her head. "Thank you, Nick," she said as she leaned forward and hugged him. "Any time," Nick said as he returned the hug. Judy went to pull away, just as Nick was opening his mouth to say something. She looked up and went to peck him on the cheek, only for her lips to touch his.

Both animals stared at each other in shock, before they closed their eyes and deepened the kiss. They ended up forgetting about ordering takeout, instead focusing solely on each other for the rest of the night, exploring each other's bodies to the point of exhaustion. As the two made love throughout the night, eventually moving from the bathroom to the living room, and finally to the bedroom, Judy found herself appreciating the fact that Nick's apartment had much thicker walls than her own, for she was quite loud when in the throes of passion.

Later on, after their third round, when both of them were laying side by side, exhausted and covered with perspiration, Judy tugged on Nick's arm and brought his face to look at hers. For the past three and a half years, Nick had been by her side through thick and thin, Judy reflected. They'd stayed by each other's sides through sickness, injuries, headaches, scoldings from Bogo, boredom, car chases, prejudice, obscenely hot and humid patrols on summer days, broken down cars, sunsets, sunrises, spilled coffee and burns, rain storms, blizzards, and even a freak hurricane. They had been each other's anchor, keeping themselves grounded when things got chaotic or too intense.

 _I've waited long enough to tell him_ , Judy thought to herself. "Judy?" Nick asked her as he saw her studying him. He saw tears begin to well in her eyes. "Are you okay? I mean, I wasn't that _bad_ , was I?" Nick asked her humorously. "No. It's... ever since that sunset in Tundra Town for last year's Winter Solstice, I've wanted to tell you these three words," Judy said.

"I am handsome?" Nick joked. Judy smiled and shook her head. She then reached over and cupped his face with her paws, bringing their muzzles together, only mere millimeters of space between them. She then spoke three small yet world-changing words that she'd waited for what felt like an eternity to say. "I love you."

Nick gazed into Judy's eyes and smiled. "I know. I love you, too," he said, before bringing her into a deep kiss, which soon lead to their final and most passionate round. This time, the _neighbors_ were the ones who appreciated the thick walls.

* * *

 

**BONUS** **OUTTAKE - For Shits and Giggles  
**

"Hey, Nick?" Judy asked as she rode his red rocket.  "Yeah?" Nick asked her with a smile.  "Am I better than Cynthia was?" Judy asked him.  Nick's smile faltered.  "Uh... well, um, you're both completely different animals, so-ack!" Nick choked out as Judy grabbed his throat and removed him from her.  "Okay, you're better!  You're better!" Nick cried out.  "Good fox," Judy said with a smile before sheathing herself with him again and resuming her Wilde ride.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, I technically wrote this story BEFORE writing Magnum Fur, so I wasn't quite confident enough to write a full lemon at that point in time. However, I have included a lime-flavored joke after the ending line break of the chapter. I hope you all enjoyed that.


	6. Merrily We Hopp Along

Disclaimer: Obviously, Zootopia is property of Disney.

* * *

**Merrily We Hopp Along**

* * *

Date: Friday, May 27th, 2019 

"This is stupid," Wilbur muttered as he adjusted his costume. "Come on, it'll be fun!" Zack said with more enthusiasm than Wilbur. "How the hell does just waltzing into the station equal a good plan?" Wilbur asked him. "Oh, quite whining, Wilbur," Maulia said.

"Look, we need to make sure that the target is dead. Just go in there, and ask them if they have a bathroom. Then just walk around until you find someplace," Zack explained. "No. That's a stupid plan, and it could easily go wrong in a hundred different ways at minimum!" the koala retorted. Maulia groaned.

"Then lie and say that your a friend of Mr. Albigul," Maulia said. "What if he says that he's additional security?" Zack suggested. "No, they'll ask for proof if he says that," Maulia retorted.

"You two are idiots," Wilbur said flatly. "Yeah, we know," Zack said. "Look, at the very least, you can go in there and find out about the cops who are guarding him," Maulia said. "Yeah, that shouldn't be to difficult. Just ask if you can speak to the famous Officer Judy Hopps, an inspiration to small mammals everywhere!" Zack suggested with a smile.

Wilbur opened his mouth to retort, until he realized that this plan actually was the least stupid thing to come out of Zack Bandit's mouth all morning. "You know, that plan might actually work... if Hopps were our target. But she's not, so I don't see the point in finding out anything about her," Wilbur said.

"But, as Roland confirmed when he intercepted their radios, Officer Hopps is part of the lizard's added security detail. If we find out what's going on with her, then we can find out what's going on with the lizard," Bandit explained. "Yeah, and what if no one wants to talk about her? And anyway, how do you know that she didn't die yesterday after Roland's little gift blew up her apartment?" Wilbur asked in response.

"That's... a good question, actually," Bandit said. "Well, we can always kidnap the fox," Maulia said. Wilbur looked at her, dumbfounded. "Why the hell would we do that!?" Wilbur asked her, exasperated. "Leverage. We kidnap the fox and hold him for ransom, forcing the police to give us the lizard, or at least his body if he's dead," Maulia explained.

"No. I don't like kidnapping," Wilbur said. "Well, those are the plans that we have, unless you have a better suggestion?" Bandit replied. "Well... dammit. But what makes you think that the fox is best choice?" Wilbur asked him. "Well, he is the partner of Judy Hopps. And he's Zootopia's first, and currently only, fox officer," Bandit explained.

"Why not kidnap one of the lizard's security detail from Reptaelia. I'm positive that those guys are still here," Wilbur reasoned. "That's a good idea. Ooh! Maybe we can kidnap one of them _and_ the fox!" Maulia exclaimed in delight. "You scare me," Wilbur said. "Oh, I scare everyone, Wilbur. Well, except for Zack, but we're made for each other, so of course he isn't bothered," Maulia replied.

"So I've noticed," Wilbur said before turning around to look at the ZPD station. "This is going to end in a blood-bath," Wilbur muttered to himself before he made his way down the fire escape from the roof of the building the the trio had been plotting on. Roland had disappeared earlier that morning, and Wilbur could honestly care less. He just wanted to get the job done and go back home to get paid.

When he reached the ground of the alley, he looked around before walking out onto the sidewalk. He made sure to put his hands in his pants pockets and act nonchalantly while making his way over to the police station, walking through the large central park area in a nonchalant manner. He felt around and gripped the ZPD pamphlet with the picture of Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde on it.

This pamphlet would be necessary in order to make himself appear to be fanboy of the rabbit police officer. _This is so stupid, but... it's the least suicidal plan that those two idiots have come up with so far_ , Wilbur thought to himself as he made his way to the front doors of the ZPD HQ.

Meanwhile, inside the lobby of the ZPD HQ, Benjamin Clawhauser ate a sprinkle-covered donut while watching a new Gazelle music video on his phone. "Ahem," he heard a voice cough. He looked around the room, before turning his gaze down to see a koala bear. "Oh, hello there! Welcome to the Zootopia Police Department's First Precinct!" Benjamin said enthusiastically.

"Uh, h-hi," the koala said shyly. "Can I help you?" Clawhauser asked him with a smile. "W-Well, I, uh, was wondering... is it true that Judy Hopps really is the first rabbit police officer here in Zootopia?" the koala asked him. "Sure is!" Clawhauser replied.

The koala pulled a pamphlet out of his left pant pocket and uncrumpled it. "Do you know if... maybe I could talk to her? You know, to let her know how much of an inspiration she ui to all of us little guys out there?" the koala asked eagerly. "Oh, I'm sorry, but not right now. She's a bit... busy at the moment," Clawhauser replied, remembering what he had heard on the other end of Judy's phone when he had called her up this morning to check on her.

He'd decided to wait until the end of his shift to let the chief know that he had won their bet on whether or not Hopps and Wilde were a couple. Pulling himself back to the present, Clawhauser looked at the disappointed expression on the koala's face. "Oh. Do you know when she'll be available? I'd like to at least get her autograph so that I can have something to take back home," the koala said.

"Well, where do you live and when do you have to go back?" Clawhauser asked him. "The same place that all koala's come from," the koala said. "You're from the Outback Region?" Clawhauser asked him, knowing that not all koala's came from there, but he wanted to humor the koala before expanding his knowledge of the world.

"Outback Region? What's that?" the koala asked him. "Oh, so you're not from there? Do you mean Reptaelia, then?" Clawhauser asked him. "Yeah. I'm here on a business trip, and I have to go back tomorrow. I thought at the very least I should try to see if the rumors were true, about the rabbit cop," the koala said.

"Aw, I'm sorry. Tomorrow's her day off, and I'm not legally allowed to give out information on where she lives," Clawhauser said apologetically. "I understand. We have the same kind of rules back home, too," the koala said. "Yeah. We can't have bad guys finding out where our officers live and attacking them in their homes. I'm sorry that you couldn't see her, but I'll tell her that she has a fan," Clawhauser said.

The koala smiled and nodded his head. "Thank you. Take care now," the koala said before walking back out the front doors of the station. Clawhauser smiled before unpausing his music video and nodding his head along to Gazelle's voice.

* * *

"What did you learn?" Bandit and Maulia asked Wilbur when after he got into the jeep. They'd decided to pick him up about a block away from the police station so that they could head on back to their hotel. "Well, the rabbit and fox are alive, or at least the rabbit is," Wilbur replied.

"What about Albigul?" Maulia asked him. "Didn't ask. That would've outed me in a heartbeat," Wilbur replied. "Dammit," Maulia whispered. "Still, we know that she's alive," Bandit said. "Yeah, but with her apartment a burning wreck, where are we going to find her?" Maulia asked.

"Are you still planning to go through with that kidnapping idea?" Wilbur asked her. "Of course," Maulia replied as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Well, we could always look up the fox's address," Bandit suggested. "Why the fox?" Wilbur asked him. "Well, if the rabbit is alive, then the fox probably is as well. Who knows? The rabbit might be with him at his place," Bandit replied.

"Unlikely. They'd probably have a hotel or safe house for the rabbit to hide at for a while," Wilbur said. "We won't know until we make the effort to check," Bandit said. "Fine, but make damn sure that Roland doesn't plant any explosives at the fox's place. We don't need him making the cops more paranoid," Wilbur said. "Fair enough," Maulia said with a nod.

"Wait, what am I _saying?_ We're about to _kidnap_ a _police officer_ ," Wilbur muttered in dismay as he realized that keeping Roland out of this wouldn't make any difference. "What if the lizard is dead? What do we do with the rabbit?" Wilbur asked Maulia. "We'd give her back... after dropping her off someplace that'll take the police at least a day to find," Maulia replied.

"East Savannah Apartments," Bandit said. "Huh?" Wilbur asked. "That's where the fox lives," Bandit explained. "How do you know that?" "My phone," Bandit said. "You got that off your cell phone?" Wilbur asked him. "It's one of those track phones. You can take it anywhere in the world. I use those cards you find in the store to pay for the minutes," Bandit explained.

"Do we head there now, or do we return to the hotel and get some stuff ready?" Wilbur asked with a sigh. "Hotel," Maulia said. "Bandit, how did you find the fox's address on your phone?" Wilbur asked as he took a left turn and made his way over to the tunnel that lead to Sahara Square. "It'll be easier to show you. I'll wait until we get to the hotel," Bandit said. "That's a fair go," Wilbur replied.

* * *

Lieutenant Elizabeth Matheson frowned as she ended the call with Chief Rockatansky. "Is something wrong?" Spencer asked her. "Not yet. Once we get back to Reptaelia..." Matheson didn't finish. Spencer looked carefully and saw that she was holding back tears. "It was one mistake, Liz. He can't kick you off the force for that," Spencer said in an attempt to comfort her.

"It doesn't matter that it was only one mistake. It was a gutser. I'm now only a police officer until we get back home," she said, a lump forming in her throat. The goanna sighed and pulled out a chair to sit on, being careful of his tail. "What about the rest of us?" Spencer asked her. "You guys are okay. I told him that you were all occupied with setting up the security system when I decided to take Mr. Albigul for that walk," she replied.

"It isn't your fault, Liz," Spencer said. "Yes, it is. I should've done more research on this place and learned how the locals view reptiles. I'm just so used to Reptaelia, where mammals and reptiles live in the same neighborhoods, that I didn't realize how the animals here would react," she said. "It was an honest mistake," Spencer said. "One that could've cost Mr. Albigul his life," Matheson retorted. "They could've done more than just drive him to the Outback Region. They could've beaten him or killed him," she continued.

"Maybe I deserve to lose my job," she said sadly. "That's a load of shit and you know it," Spencer snapped at her. "You're a good cop, and we all know it. Anyone who's seen your record knows it, and Chief Rockatansky is just looking for an excuse to get rid of you," Spencer said with a growl.

"You're right," Matheson said. "Rockatansky's an asshole," she added with a wry smile. "Damn right he is," Spence said. "Still... once we get home, I'm no longer a police officer," Matheson said. "Keep Albigul alive till it's time for the trial, and maybe we can change the chief's mind," Spencer said. "Maybe, but it's very unlikely," Matheson replied. "Then just do the best job that you can until it's over, Liz. That's all I have left to say," Spencer said.

"Thank you. How are the 'roos?" Matheson asked him. "They're playing some card game with Mr. Albigul," Spencer said. "I think the white-throat is winning," Spencer added.

* * *

**East Savannah Apartments, Apartment 423**

"Okay, the food will be ready in about twenty minutes, but their delivery car isn't running today, so I'll have to go pick up our food myself. Do you want to come along?" Nick asked Judy as she finished getting dressed, putting on a pair of sweatpants and a red T-Shirt. "Thanks but... I'll just wait here. I'm gonna call my parents. I haven't spoken to them in a while. I'll see you when you get back with the food," Judy replied.

"Okay. It'll probably take me thirty minutes to get there, so I might not be back for at least an hour. I'll make sure that the guys outside check up on you at least once," Nick said, referring to the two officers who Bogo had assigned to keep an eye on the apartment for the day. "Thanks, Nick. Now go and get our food. I'm hungry, and you have nothing edible in your fridge," Judy said, gently smacking him on the shoulder.

"Hey, careful there, Carrots. If that arm don't work, I can't use my magic fingers very well," Nick said humorously, causing Judy to blush. "Just go," she said with a smile as she pushed him out the door and closed it behind him. "Oh! I should call Fru Fru first!" Judy said. "I have to tell her that me and Nick are together now," she said to herself with a smile.

* * *

"There's a police cruiser parked out front," Wilbur said. "Don't worry. Bandit and I can deal with that," Maulia said with a grin. "You're positive that this is the right place?" Wilbur asked Bandit. "Absolutely. Now go in there, find the fox's room, and see if he's alive. If the rabbit's in there, take her," Bandit replied. "And what about the police over there?" Wilbur asked.

"We have a plan," Maulia said with a grin. "Now, Wilbur, when we make a pass around the block, you need to get out and then make your way inside the building. Zack and I will take care of the cops," Maulia said. As soon as they turned a corner, they stopped the car and Wilbur got out. He watched as the jeep continued driving before it turned another corner.

Making his way over to the front entrance of the apartment complex, Wilbur watched the police cruiser out of the corner of his eye, acting casual as he made his way to the entrance. Once inside the lobby, he looked at the list of residents on the wall. "Norton, Trueheart, Vasquez, Furrero... No Wilde? Come on, where's... ah-ha," he said to himself. He made his way up the stairs, heading for the fourth floor.

* * *

Benjamin Clawhauser sighed as he looked at his now empty donut box. He peeked down and saw his remaining two under the desk. Just as he was about to reach down to open one of them, the desk phone rang. "Zootopia Police Department. This is Officer Clawhauser speaking," Clawhauser said. " _Help, help! There's a deranged lunatic running around the apartment complex, howling at the sky and stripping his clothes off!_ " cried a female voice.

"What's your name and where are you at?" Clawhauser asked her. " _My name is Sylia Ringclaw, and I'm visiting a friend at the East Savannah Apartments! Oh my god, he's completely naked now! He's-He's rubbing himself all over the walls!_ " she cried. "Ma'am, can you give me a description of the animal?" Clawhauser asked her.

" _I-I don't know! I think he's a weird-looking wolf! A predator, definitely, but I'm not sure which species! He's taken off everything now! Oh my god, he's **hung!**_ " the female cried. "Just stay calm. We have officers near that location. We can have them over there shortly," Clawhauser said.

" _Please, hurry! I think he's touching himself! He's starting to pleasure himself! He's-oh no._ " "Ma'am?" Clawhauser asked. " _He's looking at me! He's looking at me while pleasuring himself! He's pointing his-his-his... **thing** at me! It's red, veiny, and throbbing! He's tossing off while looking at me!_ " Sylia said, her breath hitching.

"S-Stay calm, ma'am. Please, get inside a room and do not let the pervert inside with you," Clawhauser said. " _He's finishing! He's finishing and now he's spraying it everywhere! He isn't stopping! He's starting another round! Please, send someone over here! I've never seen such arousing depravity before!_ " Sylia cried over the phone.

"Right away, just stay on the line and I'll contact our closest units. Which part of the apartment complex are you situated in right now?" Clawhauser asked her. " _I don't remember! I can't take my eyes off the naked male! It's like a train wreck! I can't stop watching! I-I can't control myself! I think I might end up joining him if this doesn't stop,_ " she replied. Clawhauser picked up the radio and called the officers stationed outside of the apartment complex, informing them of the situation.

"Ma'am, do **not** join the pervert in his activities. Stay calm, and keep yourself hidden from him until the ZPD arrive," Clawhauser said. " _But he won't stop! He just keeps going! I've never seen such stamina! I don't know how long I can hold out,_ " Sylia cried. "Don't worry, Ma'am, officers are on their way," Clawhauser said. " _Oh, thank you!_ " Sylia cried before hanging up. "And here I thought that I'd heard everything by now," Clawhauser said to himself as he put his head in his paws.

* * *

"Did it work?" Bandit asked Maulia as he stopped moon-walking with all of his clothes on. "It worked. The two officers stationed outside will be responding soon," Maulia replied. "We should call Wilbur and let him know," Bandit said.

Maulia nodded her head before calling Wilbur on her satellite phone. " _What's the situation?_ " Wilbur asked. "We've distracted the police. They'll be entering the apartment complex shortly," Maulia said. " _ **What!?** You were supposed to divert their attention **away** from the complex, not towards it! You idiots!_ " Wilbur snapped at them. "Have you found the fox and the rabbit yet?" Maulia asked him.

" _No! I haven't even arrived at their door yet,_ " Wilbur replied. "Then you'd better hurry. Oh, what door is it?" Maulia asked. " _Apartment number Four-Two-Three,_ " Wilbur replied. "We'll see you there. Bye," Maulia said before hanging up. "I got the room number, let's go," she said to Bandit. "Yahoo!" he said excitedly as he joined her in entering the apartment complex.

* * *

" _Just don't scare me an' your mother like that, Jude!_ " Stu Hopps said through the phone. Judy had her parents on Skype video conference call. "Okay. I'm sorry I didn't call and tell you sooner, but like I said, I've had a lot to deal with lately," Judy said. " _It's all right. As long as you're safe,_ " Bonnie Hopps said with a relieved smile. " _Say, Jude, what's that mark on your neck?_ " Stu asked her.

Judy blushed as she realized that she hadn't covered up the love bites that Nick had given her this morning. "Um, mark?" Judy asked him. " _Yeah, on your neck,_ " Stu said. "Oh, that's probably from Bucky's horns. He did shield me from the blast," Judy half-lied. While Bucky had indeed shielded her from the explosion, his horns had not been in any position to make contact with her body.

" _Bucky? Who's this Bucky fella?_ " Stu asked. "Dad, Bucky is-was one of my neighbors at Pangolin Arms. He lived right next door," Judy said. " _Oh, you mean one of them loud fellas who were always yellin' through the walls,_ " Stu said. "Yes," Judy said. " _What about the other one? Bronk or somethin'?_ " Stu asked.

"His name was Pronk," Judy said sadly. " _Was?_ " Bonnie asked. "Pronk... died in the blast," Judy explained to her parents. " _Oh. I-I'm sorry to hear that,_ " Bonnie said. "So am I," Judy said. " _Y'know, this is a good reason to come back an' be a carrot farmer like the rest of us, Jude! No old and worn gas pipes causing explosions 'cause of cheap landlords, and no criminals drivin' around, shootin' up police cars! It'd be nice and safe, quiet too,_ " Stu said.

"Dad, we've been over this. I like my job here in Zootopia. I like being able to make a difference. If I had stayed a carrot farmer, then Bellwether's plot would've succeeded, and predators and prey would be in a segregated society that might even force predators to wears collars against their will! And even if Bellwether had been stopped without me and Nick getting involved, what about that corruption ring that Nick and I exposed?" Judy asked them.

"That would still be going on, and crooked cops would be hurting innocent civilians worse than before. I know that there's danger involved, but I accepted that when I signed up. I know the risks, and I'll keep taking those risks in order to make a difference in the world," Judy said proudly.

Bonnie smiled with a sigh. " _Okay. We'll let it go for now. So, anyway, what's it like being in a fox's den?_ " Bonnie asked her daughter. "It's an apartment," Judy replied. " _Oh, I know that. But... well, none of us have ever been in a fox's home before. Even working with Gideon, we still don't really go into his home very much, and then it's usually on that large porch,_ " Bonnie said. "Fine. It's cozy. It has a bathroom, and a kitchen, and a living room with a couch, two bedrooms, and a closet. It's... nicer than my old apartment," Judy said.

" _I'll say. Your old apartment was nothin' more than an oversized closet,_ " Stu huffed. " _Stu!_ " Bonnie admonished her husband. " _What? It's true innit?_ " Stu asked her. "It's okay, Mom. Dad's right. Even Nick was always telling me that I should try to find someplace better, and now I pretty much have to," Judy said. _Although... given what's happened recently, maybe we'll just make this place our home_ , Judy thought.

" _Hey, Bonn, what's that little light in the corner mean?_ " Stu asked his wife. " _Oh, the battery's low. We need to find the charger for the phone. We'll call you back later tonight, sweetie! Stay safe! We love you, bye!_ " Bonnie and Stu said before ending the call. "Bye," Judy said with a smile.

Just then, there was a knock on the door. "It hasn't been an hour yet... has it?" Judy asked herself as she walked toward the door. "Hello?" Judy asked as she walked up to the door and looked through the lower peephole. "Uh, I'm looking for an Anna Malle? I was told that she lived in Apartment Four-Twenty-Six, but no one's home," said a koala standing outside the door.

Judy studied the koala closely. He didn't seem to be armed, and he didn't give off any vibes that felt wrong. Deciding that she could at least try to help this animal, Judy opened the door to greet the koala in person. "Huh? I thought that, uh, a fox lived in this apartment," the koala said, somewhat surprised.

"He does, but he's busy at the moment. Who told you that anyway?" Judy asked. "Oh, I was askin' around for Miss Malle's room number, and one of the animals livin' here, some badger, told me to watch out for the fox who lives in Four-Twenty-Three. Said that he was real shifty and stuff," the koala said.

"That isn't true at all. Nick is one of the most trustworthy animal's you will ever meet," Judy said defensively. "Nick? Nick who?" the koala asked. "Nicholas Wilde, of the ZPD," Judy said proudly. "Oh! Then, that must make you... Judy Hopps, right? First rabbit officer of the ZPD?" the koala asked her.

"Uh... kinda," Judy replied. "Oh... then, uh... I have a question for you," the koala said, waving one hand in the air. "Yeah?" Judy asked him. "Can you dodge this?" he asked her in a vague manner.

"Huh?" Judy asked, just as the koala brought out a taser and jabbed it at her, shocking her and causing her to stumble back. The koala moved forward swiftly, and intending to deliver another shock, only for Judy to kick him in the face and stun him. Judy moved fast, quickly sprinting off the floor and spinning around to deliver a roundhouse kick to the koala's side, sending him tumbling to the floor.

Wilbur rolled over and righted himself, taking on a combat stance as he stared down Judy Hopps. "We can do this the easy way or the hard way," Wilbur said. "Who are you, and what do you want?" Judy asked him as the two opponents circled each other. "Me? I just want to kill a lizard and go home. My companions are the ones who want to kidnap you for leverage," Wilbur said.

"You're an assassin hired by Komo Domo, right?" Judy asked. Wilbur said nothing. He merely continued to move until Judy was right in front of the open doorway of the apartment. "You're smart," Wilbur finally said. "Thank you, but compliments won't stop me from arresting you for attacking a police officer," Judy replied.

"It was worth a shot," Wilbur said with a grin. "Not really. There are two other cops, just outside the building. They'll be coming up here to check on me any minute," Judy said, smirking in victory. "I don't know about that," Wilbur said with a smirk of his own.

"What do you mean?" Judy asked him, concern for the two officers flowing through her. "Well, they'll just be a bit preoccupied for a while," Wilbur said. "What does... that... mean?" Judy asked as she felt a claw gently tapping on the top of her head a few times. Judy glanced up and saw a dingo standing over her, grinning.

He grabbed Judy's head with one hand. "Nighty night!" he said before pushing her to the floor and punching her in the gut, knocking the wind out of her. "Oof!" Judy exhaled. "Come on, tie her up, quickly!" the dingo ordered his partner, a female dingo who quickly entered the room beside him. Judy struggled against the two dingoes, but their combined strength overwhelmed her. "Cover her mouth," the koala said as he grabbed some duct tape and placed it on the rabbit's muzzle.

Maulia tied rope in multiple knots around the rabbit's legs and arms. "Let's put her in the bag," Bandit said as he grabbed a burlap sack. "Stop struggling," he grunted as he placed her in the bag, getting his face kicked at least once. "Oh, we're going to have some fun with you," he muttered darkly as he tied the sack closed.

"Okay, let's haul ass!" Bandit exclaimed. "Wait!" Maulia shouted before she ran over to the couch and grabbed Judy's phone. "We might want this," she said before trotting over to join her companions. "Okay, let's move," the koala said as they closed the door and ran through the hallway. Maulia grabbed Wilbur and put him on her back as she ran, with Bandit carrying the sack holding Judy Hopps.

* * *

Officer Thomas McLeod, a gray wolf, and Officer Hans Fursfield, a brown bear, made their way over to Apartment 423. "It was a wild goose chase," McLeod said. "I thought it was too crazy to be true," Fursfield said in agreement. "Although, I definitely sniffed something odd, but not what we were called out for." "Smelled like some kind of... canine," Fursfield said.

"Yeah, but not one that I'm overly familiar with. The scent was familiar, in a vague way, but nothing I could immediately recognize," McLeod surmised. "Same with me," Fursfield said as he knocked on the door. Both officers waited for a minute before knocking again.

"There's no response," McLeod said. "Excellent observation, eagle eyes," Fursfield said. "Miss Hopps?" McLeod asked as he knocked on the door again. He wrapped a paw around the handle and turned. "What the? The door's unlocked," he said.

He opened the door and looked inside. Nothing seemed out of place, he noted as he walked through the living room and over to the small kitchen. McLeod then noticed a faint scent in the air. One that was starting to become familiar. He dropped onto all fours and began sniffing the floor and the furniture throughout the apartment.

He paused when he reached the threshold of the bedroom. _Okay, I guess I lost **that** bet_ , he thought to himself as the musk of coitus wafted around his nostrils. He backed out of the bedroom and sniffed the short hallway and bathroom, further confirming the fact that he owed Clawhauser money.

After returning to the living room, McLeod picked up two more scents, one of which was very familiar, and another that he didn't recognize at all. "What did you find?" Fursfield asked him warily. "First, I owe Clawhauser money. Second, there are five scents in this apartment. Two of them belong two a rabbit and fox, our fellow officers. The other three are new. Two of them are similar, but still distinct. They're canids of some kind, just like the hallway scent. In fact, one of the scents in here _is_ from the hallway," McLeod said.

"And the last one?" Fursfield asked him. "I can't place it. It's not a canine, and it ain't a rabbit. It's one that I'm very unfamiliar with," McLeod replied. "Let me sniff," Fursfield said. "Be my guest, but Officer Hopps isn't here. I'm going to call in and report that she's missing. We can't waste anymore time," McLeod said.

"You do that, I'm going to try distinguishing the scents," Fursfield said. "Hey... I know this one," he said as he took a whiff. "Hey, McLeod, I recognize one of these scents," Fursfield said to the wolf. "You do?" McLeod asked him. "Yeah. It's a koala," Fursfield said. "One of my neighbors is a koala," he added.

"Okay, I'm reporting to dispatch," McLeod said before pressing on his shoulder radio. "Come in dispatch. Come in, Clawhauser," McLeod said. " _This is dispatch, what's your status?_ " Clawhauser asked. "This is Officer McLeod. We are at Apartment Four-Twenty-Three at East Savannah Apartments. Officer Judy Hopps is missing, and we have the scents of three unknown individuals inside the apartments," McLeod said.

" _Ten-Four. We're sending back up and an investigation team. Stay on site until further notice,_ " Clawhauser said. "Ten-Four, dispatch. McLeod out," McLeod said before sighing in frustration at the situation. "This week just keeps getting better and better."


	7. Kidnapping/It's Personal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After Judy is kidnapped, Nick becomes involved in a desperate search for her, eventually meeting up with some old faces from his past.

Disclaimer: As obvious as it should be, I must remind everyone that Zootopia is property of Disney.

* * *

**Kidnapping / It's Personal**

* * *

Date: Friday, May 27th, 2019 

Nick Wilde's first indication that something was wrong was when he saw the number of police vehicles parked outside of the apartment complex. He tried to fight the growing sensation that something terrible had happened by focusing on getting the food up to Judy. His efforts were in vain, however, when he saw his fellow officers cordoning off the room.

"Fangmeyer!" Nick called out as he saw the tigress. "Wilde, listen. We-" "Where is she? What's happened?" Nick asked her. "Wilde, Judy's been taken," Fangmeyer said. "Taken?" Nick asked her. "Someone kidnapped her," Fangmeyer clarified. "No," Nick whispered.

"I'm sorry, but we're doing everything that we can in order to determine who took her," Fangmeyer said. "We've already determined that a koala was involved, but there were two other scents that we aren't entirely familiar with," Fangmeyer continued. Nick stepped over to the threshold of the open doorway. "Don't bother, the scents are gone now," Fangmeyer said.

"I can have Grizzoli drive you down to the precinct to speak with Bogo, if you'd like," Fangmeyer offered. "What about the officers who were supposed to guard her? Where are they?" Nick asked her. "They were tricked by a diversion. A call came in reporting a pervert performing... indecent acts in public on the other side of the complex," Fangmeyer said.

"We didn't realize what it was until we had discovered Hopps to be missing," Officer Fursfield said as he walked into view. "We were tricked. If the call had been for something outside of the complex or close by but still a bit away, we would've thought that something was up," Fursfield explained.

"But... with it being inside the building... you didn't think anyone would be stupid enough to put you near them while they pulled something off. That's a hell of a con," Nick said. "I'm sorry. One of us should have come over here to make sure that nothing happened while the other investigated," Fursfield said. "I accept your apology, and I probably would've fallen for it too," Nick said.

"How far have you gotten so far?" Nick then asked Fangmeyer. "We just got here about ten minutes ago," Fangmeyer said. "We're still searching for fur samples and anything else that could help us out," Fangmeyer continued. "What about Judy's phone? Maybe there's something on there that could help us," Nick suggested. "We can't find her phone. Whoever took her also took the phone," Fangmeyer said.

"Why would someone kidnap Judy?" Nick asked rhetorically. "She's been targeted twice this week. First the apartment exploding, and now this," Fangmeyer said. "We don't know who did this or why, and we have very little evidence to go on," Nick said before pounding the wall with a fist. "Shit!"

* * *

Judy groaned as she was deposited onto the floor. Looking around, she saw that she was in some kind of basement or cellar. "And it lives!" the male dingo, who Judy had learned was named Bandit, exclaimed. "Good, now can you call the police and demand that they deliver the lizard to us?" the koala, who Judy learned was named Wilbur, asked the dingo. "I will, I will, but not just yet," Bandit said.

"Zack, Honey, I think you're scaring the poor wittle wabbit," the female dingo, who Judy had learned was named Maulia, said to Bandit. Maulia kneeled down in front of the rabbit and righted her. "Officer Judy Hopps, first rabbit officer of the ZPD," Maulia said as she looked the rabbit over. Judy glared at her.

"Aww, are you trying to intimidate me with that glare?" Maulia asked her. "That's cute," Bandit said. The door to the basement opened, causing the group to look up at the stairs where a wallaby stood. "Okay, I did some recon on the safe house where the lizard is at, and I found a few holes in their defenses. We should be able to sneak in tonight and..." the wallaby paused.

"Please, tell me that that isn't a police officer," he said. "Um... she isn't?" Bandit said. "What the hell is wrong with you!?" the wallaby exclaimed. "Nothing. We just kidnapped the rabbit so that we can use her as a bargaining chip to make the police give us the lizard," Maulia replied.

"It's a solid plan," Bandit said. "You're insane," the wallaby said. "Tell me something new, Roland," Wilbur said. "Wait... you're the wallaby from the freeway!" Judy exclaimed. Roland stared at her. "Couldn't you guys put a blindfold on her or something?" Roland asked them.

"Huh. I guess we forgot about that," Bandit said. "Look, blindfold her and dump her someplace. I talked to Mr. Domo last night, and he is going to be very pissed off when he learns that we've continued attacking the rabbit," Roland said. "Why would Komo care about that?" Wilbur asked him.

"Because, Wilbur, Mr. Domo wants us to focus on the lizard. We can take care of the rabbit when we're done with Mr. Albigul," Roland said. "Komo threatened you, didn't he?" Wilbur asked with a grin. "He spoke to me on the phone yesterday. I already mentioned that," Roland said. "He threatened to cut your pay, didn't he?" Wilbur asked him.

"Fine, yes he did. Now, can we please get the rabbit out of here?" Roland asked. "No," Maulia said. "No?" Roland asked. "Yes," Maulia replied. "Yes?" Roland asked her. "No," Maulia said, causing Bandit to snicker. "Besides, I want to play with her phone for a bit," Maulia said with a grin as she glanced over at Judy.

"Let's see... pictures, contacts, songs... the list goes on," Maulia said. "Wait... is this all pop music? No metal, or rock? No blues or jazz? No classical pieces or film scores?" Maulia asked as she looked over at Judy. "And no country, huh? I figured a farm girl like you would have at least two or three banjo tunes or something on here," Maulia said.

"I like what I like," Judy said. "Of course you do, and what you like kind of sucks," Maulia said. "Hey, it does not!" Judy protested. "Sure it does," Bandit said. "That's it," Wilbur said as he walked over and grabbed the phone. "We're calling the police to make the ransom demand," he said, just before Maulia snatched the phone back from him.

"No. We're going to have fun with our cute little friend first. Zack, prepare the large multi-function printer!" Maulia shouted. "Right away," Bandit said with a grin as he walked over to a corner of the room and wheeled a large white and blue colored office printer out. "Let's get some photo paper loaded in this baby," Zack said as he grabbed a package of said papers and began loading them into a tray.

"Wilbur," Roland said, "I've identified some holes in the security system for the safe house. We can attack and finish the job tonight, but I need one more animal with me. Do you want to come along?" Roland asked the koala. Wilbur looked over at Zack and Maulia, who were arguing over how to set the printer up, before returning his attention to Roland.

"Yeah," Wilbur said with a sigh. "What time do we strike?" Wilbur asked. "The first ZPD team leaves at five thirty, and the second car doesn't arrive at the house until six. The four cops inside the place don't leave, but we can take 'em out without too much trouble," Roland said.

"We can?" Wilbur asked him. "Yeah. The Zootopia police are only allowed to carry sleepers, not lethals, so we have the advantage," Roland said as he pulled out a pistol. "Oi, that's right, we do," Wilbur said with a grin.

Judy listened to them, frowning. _I have to warn the others somehow_ , she thought. She looked over at Maulia and Bandit, seeing that Maulia had set her phone on a table next to the printer. And then Wilbur entered her field of view. "Hey, Maulia, you might want to keep that phone closer to you," Wilbur said.

Judy's heart sank. "Sorry, Officer Hopps, but we have a job to do. We don't do the job, we don't get paid. You understand how it is, don't you?" Wilbur asked her. "You're all the way across the ocean. Mr. Domo can't touch you, so why can't you just turn yourself in and start over? You could easily send Mr. Domo to prison and cut down your sentence," Judy implored the koala.

Wilbur sighed. "Okay, so you don't quite understand. See, when you join ranks with Mr. Domo, you don't leave. You don't cross him either. You can run as far and as long as you can, but eventually, he will find you. His power doesn't just come from his money or the drugs he peddles. He has raw physical strength, and a nasty attitude when things go sour. He likes the taste of blood, and Komodo Dragons are quite capable of consuming raw flesh without getting sick," Wilbur explained.

Judy's eyes widened. _I witnessed a murder that Mr. Domo committed in person._ "Oh sweet cheese and crackers," Judy whispered. "Cheese and crackers? Don't you know how to swear?" Wilbur asked her. "Cheese and crackers, cabbage and crab cakes, peaches and cream!" Judy sang. "Okay, that's gonna get annoying real fast," Wilbur said with a frown.

"Got it!" Bandit cried out triumphantly. "I have bested the evil power cable and have forced it to do my bidding!" he exclaimed. "Congratulations," Wilbur said flatly. "Hey, Wilbur, do you still have that one CD from the time we tortured that guy?" Bandit asked. "What guy? You need to be more specific," Wilbur replied.

"Uh... it was that guy who had stolen portion of a drug shipment and had tried to sell it for his own profit," Bandit said. "Oh, now I remember. Wait, why do you want it?" Wilbur asked. "You know... for fun," Bandit said. "Bandit, there are some lines that you just should not cross. However, I know that you are incapable of seeing these lines, and so I will not try to stop you," Wilbur said as he walked over to a bag on the floor and pulled out a music CD. He laid it on a table in the corner next to several guns.

"Don't use it unless you absolutely need to," Wilbur said. "If the rabbit cooperates, then we shouldn't need it," Bandit said. Maulia walked over and grabbed Judy by the neck, lifting her into the air. "Okay, time for the first round," she said.

"Round? What are you doing? Whats going on?" Judy asked her, just before her face was pressed against the glass of the scanner. Maulia lowered the lid of the scanner so that it was pressing against Judy's head. "Start scanning!" Maulia ordered Zack. Zack set the scanner for at least fifty copies and then pressed the scan and print button.

Bright light began flashing into Judy's face. "Ah!" she cried as Maulia pressed the scan lid down on her before letting it up, only to repeat the process a minute later. Zack grabbed Judy's ears and stretched them. "Ow, stop that! Let go!" she cried. "How many photos to go?" Zack asked Maulia, who was busy looking at the pictures of Judy's face.

"She needs to smile, otherwise no one will want these," Maulia said dryly. "Hear that? You need to smile more!" Bandit said as he pressed the lid down. "Ah! Ah! Stop that, it hurts!" Judy cried out. "Please! I'm barely pressing the lid down," Bandit retorted. "That one almost looks like a smile," Maulia said as she grabbed another picture. "Hear that? You're getting better!" Bandit exclaimed with a smile of his own.

"But... we need more. Switch the number of copies to one hundred," Maulia ordered. "I'll have to reset the scan queue," Bandit said. "Oh well. Do it anyway," Maulia said with a shrug.

* * *

**Zootopia Police Department, Precinct One**

"Wilde, you need to calm down," Bogo said to the fox sitting in front of him. "I'm trying, but I can't help it. Judy's life is in danger! She could be hurt, or..." Nick didn't finish the sentence.

"Wilde, I know this is hard, but we're doing everything that we can. We know that the samples of fur we found in the apartment came from a koala and two dingoes, and that's definitely a lead," Bogo said. "But we don't know who they are. Do we even have them in the Zootopia database?" Nick asked. "Well... probably not," Bogo replied.

"No, because these guys came all the way here from Reptaelia. They came here to kill Mr. Albigul, and then me and Judy got in the way, so now they're going after her. But why not me?" Nick asked. "Maybe you were the intended target this time, and Judy just happened to be there when they came knocking on your door," Bogo said.

Nick suddenly looked stricken, and he leaned against Bogo's desk. "Chief... we have to do something. These assholes shot up our cruiser, blew up Judy's apartment, and now they've kidnapped Judy," Nick said. "Thank you for providing a curt summary of the situation, Wilde, but-" "Wait! They're from Reptaelia, right? So we can call the Reptaelian police and find out what they know! We can ask them for information about these animals, can't we?" Nick asked Bogo.

"There's no guarantee that they'd know anything," Bogo said. "Can we still try anyway?" Nick asked him. Bogo sighed. "Sir... they got us into this mess. The least that they can do is answer a few questions for us," Nick said. "Wilde, don't play the blame game. We _agreed_ to help them; they didn't force us to provide security for their witness," Bogo said. "But can we still find out what they know? What information do they have on this Komodo guy and his henchmen?" Nick asked.

"Fine. But Wilde... you are technically still on paid leave. While I can't stop you from doing any investigating on your own, it wouldn't be advisable for you to seek a safe source from which you can learn something," Bogo said. "Don't go chasing these animals until you know what you're dealing with. Since you aren't on duty, I can't order you to investigate, but I'm certain that you're still capable of doing that on your own," Bogo added.

"Of course. Thank you, Chief," Nick said. Just as he was about to leave, his cell phone rang. Pulling it out, Nick saw that it was Judy's number. "Judy?" Nick asked with a hopeful voice. " _I'm sorry, but that answer is incorrect! Please try again!_ " replied a voice on the other end. Nick put his phone on speaker mode so that Bogo could hear it.

"Who are you?" Nick asked. " _I'm the dog who kidnapped your girlfriend. I mean, she is your girlfriend, right? Your apartment smelled like sex and she had your musk all over her,_ " the voice said. "What do you want from us?" Nick asked. " _Straight to the point? I wanted to have some fun first,_ " the voice said. It was definitely a male voice.

"Please, just tell me what you want with Judy," Nick said. " _Well, first I want to force her to dress up in different outfits. Then I want to put duct tape on her and rip it off multiple times. After that I'll make her watch re-runs of The Brady Bears for hours on end. It'll drive her insane,_ " the voice said. " _And, if I can find it, I might force her to listen to an hour of Polka music. Now, I'm not doing this out of some personal vendetta, mind you,_ " the voice said.

"Then why are you doing it?" Nick asked. Bogo leaned in closer. " _I'm doing it because I can. Mostly it's for fun. You know, shits and giggles, stuff like that. There really isn't a target on her yet, but I can paint one. And then I can throw darts at her!_ " Nick and Bogo exchanged glances as they realized that the perpetrator may have been more than a little deranged. " _Sure, go ahead. Say that all the crocs in my swamp are loose, I've heard it before,_ " the voice said.

"Who are you?" Nick asked. " _I'm just a bandit out for some money and a good time. You can even call me that: Bandit. Now, the main reason that I'm calling is simple. I want to make an exchange,_ " Bandit said. "What kind of exchange?" Nick asked. " _A lizard for a rabbit,_ " Bandit replied.

Bogo and Nick shared a glance. 'Reptaelia' Nick mouthed. Bogo nodded his head. "What lizard in particular?" Nick asked him. " _Don't play stupid, Officer Wilde. I'm referring to Mr. Lawrence Albigul. Now, we have three roads that we can take. The first and easiest road is that you meet us at an agreed upon location and bring the lizard with you. We arrive with the rabbit, and we trade._ "

"That does sound simple," Nick commented. " _I know, doesn't it? Anyway, the second road is a bit tougher. See, we can play this game where you try to buy time and trick us in order to find the rabbit and keep the lizard safe. But, if you take this road, then the rabbit's safety cannot be guaranteed. Neither can the lives of any other officers who get involved._ "

Bogo frowned. " _And lastly, we have the third road. You can basically sacrifice your girlfriend, keep the lizard locked up somewhere, and then hope that we don't track him down on the date of whatever trial he's being saved for. Now, this doesn't necessarily mean that the rabbit dies, but the chances are extremely high. I am going to give you twenty-four hours to think this over, starting after I hang up the phone. I will call you when the twenty-four hours are up to receive your answer. You can cut this short at anytime by calling this phone yourself and telling me your choice, but do make sure that it isn't done in haste,_ " Bandit said.

"So, there's only the three options?" Nick asked. " _Well, I don't have enough hostages for the fourth option to work. See, road number four is when I kill or threaten to kill a hostage every hour until my demands are met. Seeing how I have only one hostage, I can't really go through with that. So, I'm going to hang-_ " "Wait! Is Judy there with you?" Nick asked.

" _Yes. Don't worry; she's alive. We haven't dismembered her or done anything gruesome like that,_ " Bandit said. "Um. C-Can I... Can I talk to her, please?" Nick asked. " _Make it quick. I have a low tolerance for sentimental bullshit,_ " Bandit said. Nick heard footsteps.

" _Nick?_ " Judy asked. "Judy! You're alive!" Nick cried. " _Nick, Mr. Rosen wasn't the attacker, it was another wallaby named Roland! There are four of these guys, and they're planning to attack the safe house tonight! They know about the safe house! They're going to attack be-aah!_ " Judy cried as Nick heard a muffled sound of something being hit.

"Judy!? Judy!" Nick called out. " _That was a very bad little rabbit. Now we have to change our time tables. At least she didn't give away our location. Remember, Wilde, twenty-four hours,_ " Bandit said before hanging up.

"Did you catch that, Chief?" Nick asked Bogo. "Yes. There are four hired guns, and they're planning to attack the safe house tonight. They know its location, and they might even know how our patrol shifts are scheduled around it," Bogo said. "We have to call up the safe house and warn Lieutenant Matheson," Nick said.

"I'll get right on that. In the meantime, remember our conversation. Find out what you can about these animals, but don't go after them yet, especially not on your own," Bogo said. "Yes, Chief," Nick said before walking out the door. He had a few animals in mind who he could talk to and get information from, one of whom he hadn't spoken to in almost three years.

* * *

**Dom's Bar & Grille**

Dominic "Dom" DeSilva was a Komodo Dragon who had emigrated from his native Indonesia in 2008. Komodo Dragons, or simply Komodo monitors, were not exactly rare in Zootopia, but they were definitely uncommon in outside of the Outback Region. Dom was an exception to that, in that he had an eatery located in the Rainforest District.

On a wall behind the bar, Dom had copies of every single permit, inspection, and license plastered on the wall, for preventative measures in case anyone tried to shut him down. Every single one was up-to-date, especially the Health Code Inspection awards. He knew that his kind had a reputation for being unhygienic, and so the display of the Health Code Inspection award was one of his most important crowd-drawers, as it helped ease the minds of the animals who frequented the establishment.

Currently sitting at the bar was one of Dom's more recent customers, a Fennec fox wearing a Hawaiian shirt and khaki's. When the doors to the eatery opened with a ding, Finnick turned his head to look at the newest patron to enter the establishment that day. His eyes widened before narrowing at the fox who was quietly striding toward the bar counter.

"Hello," Nick said to Finnick. "Hi," Finnick said curtly as he nursed his drink. Finnick, despite his annoyance and anger toward his former partner, noticed that there was a certain vibe about the fox. "Fin, is Dom here?" Nick asked him. "It's his bar," Finnick replied. "Is Dom serving today?" Nick asked him. "Yeah. Why?" Finnick asked in response.

"I need to ask him some questions," Nick said. "Oh, taking down reptiles now, are we?" Finnick asked him mockingly. "Fin, whatever beef you have with me, save it for later. This is a life or death situation," Nick said. "Is that so?" Finnick asked him. "Yes. Judy's been kidnapped," Nick said sharply. Finnick's eyes widened at the news.

"Do you know by who?" Finnick asked him. "Not really. I know that they're a group of mammals from Reptaelia, and that they're using Judy as a bargaining tool to get to a key witness in a criminal investigation against their boss," Nick said. "So? What do you think Dom is gonna tell you? He's not from Reptaelia, Nick. He's from Indonesia," Finnick said.

"So is their boss," Nick said. Just then, Dom himself appeared from a back room and made his way to the counter. "Oh, Mister Wilde? What can I get you today?" Dom asked him. "Dom, I have some questions for you," Nick said. "What kind of questions?" Dom asked him. "When you lived in Indonesia, did you know anything about a Komodo Dragon named Komo Domo?" Nick asked him.

"Komo Domo? That name isn't familiar to me," Dom said. "No? You never met him back home before you moved here?" Nick asked him. "Mr. Wilde, I moved to Zootopia well over ten years ago. I haven't been keeping up with recent events in my homeland," Dom replied. "So you don't know anything about him at all?" Nick asked.

"No, Nicholas, I know nothing. You're better off asking someone who's recently moved here from Indonesia than you are asking me," Dom said. "Damn!" Nick swore. "Dom, this Domo guy might be involved in a recent kidnapping. Are you sure that you don't know anything?" Finnick asked him. "I'm positive. As I said, I haven't been keeping up with current events," Dom replied.

"Well, thanks for the help anyway," Nick said as he turned around and walked away. He had only a few contacts left, and he wasn't sure if any of them owed him favors. He got into his beat-up car and drove away, heading for Tundra Town. He didn't notice the van that was following him until he reached the snow covered estate that belonged to Mr. Big.

He saw the van pull up beside him as he got out of his car. "Finnick?" Nick asked as the Fennec fox hopped out of his van. "Nick, I'm willing to put aside our differences for now, but if you are seriously considering talking to this guy after that incident with the rug, then you are clearly out of your goddamn mind," Finnick said.

"Fin, we got that patched up, thanks to Judy. I know that he doesn't owe me any favors, but if he can tell me anything about these Reptaelian bastards and their boss, then I need to know," Nick said. "Jeez, you've really got it bad for this rabbit, don't you?" Finnick commented.

"Fin, I love her," Nick said. Finnick's eyes almost bugged out. "Nicky... you're a fox. She's a rabbit. Do you not see the biological complications here?" Finnick asked him. "I don't care, Fin. She'd do the same for me, even though I don't deserve it," Nick said. "Wait... are you saying that she loves you too?" Finnick asked him.

"Yes. She said so last night," Nick replied. "Uh-huh. And, uh, what exactly prompted her to say that?" Finnick asked him as they walked up to the front gate of Mr. Big's estate. "Oh, maybe three of the best orgasms she's ever had?" Nick replied. "You... you didn't! You _did,_ " Finnick said in shock. "Well, how do you think Fennec foxes came into existence?" Nick joked.

"Evolution, baby. Certain environments requiring certain adaptations to survive, or just adaptations to find our prey better before the whole civilization thing happened," Finnick replied. "So, Judy really got Mr. Big to let that rug thing go?" Finnick asked him. "She saved his daughter's life," Nick said.

"And he patched things up with you as a favor to her, I see? I guess you are lucky to have gotten strung along on that missing mammal case with her," Finnick said. "Yeah. You can laugh it off because you've never gotten on his bad side," Nick said. "That's because I know better than to work with mafia types," Finnick said.

"Then why are you coming with me to his estate?" Nick asked him. "Honestly? I'm not quite sure. But, after we rescue your girlfriend, you and me are gonna go someplace private and settle our differences," Finnick said. "Really? How so?" Nick asked him before he pressed the buzzer. "Well-" " _Please state your name and reason for visiting,_ " said the voice of a large polar bear.

"Nicholas P. Wilde, and friend. We're hear to talk to your boss. It's about his granddaughter's godmother," Nick said. " _I'll check to see if Mr. Big is available. Please be patient,_ " the bear said on the other end. "Yeah, I only have twenty one hours," Nick muttered under his breath.

Finnick caught this, however. "What do you mean? Are you on some kind of deadline?" Finnick asked him. "Something like that," Nick said. "Judy's captors gave you a deadline, didn't they? How long ago?" Finnick asked. "About three hours ago," Nick replied.

The intercom buzzed. " _Mr. Big is able to see you today. Thank you for your patience,_ " said the bear on the other end. The gate then opened and the two foxes walked towards the grand snow-covered building that was home to Mr. Big and his family... and a large percent of his henchmen.

After stepping inside and wiping their feet on a welcoming mat, the two foxes were greeted by a large polar bear in a suit. "Raymond? How's it going?" Nick asked. "I am well," was Raymond's curt reply. "That's... that's good. Which room does Mr. Big want us to meet him in?" Nick asked him. "Who is this?" Raymond asked as he looked at Finnick, ignoring Nick's question.

"The name's Fin. I'm an old friend of Nick's," Finnick replied, his deep voice catching the polar bear off guard for a few seconds before he regained his composure. "Very well. Follow me," Raymond said, leading Nick and Finnick through a series of hallways before opening a door and letting them inside Mr. Big's main room. Nick knew this room well. It was the same one where he and Judy had been brought after Kevin and Raymond caught them inspecting the limo that Renato Manchas had been attacked in by Emmitt Otterton when he was struck by the Night Howler serum.

"Fin, don't stand on the rug directly in front of the desk," Nick said. "Why? Trap door with a pool of sharks under it?" Finnick asked him. "Freezing cold water and no way out," Nick replied quietly. A door soon opened and several polar bears filed into the room, making way for Koslov, the largest of them, who held his paws closed before gently depositing the arctic shrew known as Mr. Big on his desk in his tiny chair.

"Nicholas, to what do I owe this pleasure? You have mentioned that Officer Hopps, the godmother of my granddaughter, is involved in your visit, but I do not see her. Tell me, Nicky, have you lied to gain an audience with me?" Mr. Big asked him. "No, sir. Judy was kidnapped earlier today," Nick replied.

"And you are visiting me for what purpose?" Mr. Big asked him. "I know that your empire is vast, and that means that you must have information on potential threats to it, such as other syndicates and empires elsewhere, perhaps even Reptaelia," Nick said. "Reptaelia? Nicky boy, Reptaelia is home those who would not last long in my territory. Reptiles can not gain foothold in Tundra Town, and so long as that is true, my empire is in no danger," Mr. Big said.

"Perhaps not now, but a crime boss in Reptaelia has sent four mercenaries here to Zootopia," Nick said. "Mercenaries? They cannot touch me in my snow-covered home," Mr. Big said dismissively. "The mercenaries aren't reptiles. They're mammals," Nick said. Mr. Big actually frowned at this bit of information. "And the crime boss? Is he also a mammal?" Mr. Big asked. "No. He's a Komodo Dragon named Komo Domo," Nick explained.

"If that is true, then why has he sent his men here to Zootopia?" Mr. Big asked. "They're here to kill a monitor lizard named Lawrence Albigul. He's a key witness in a criminal investigation against Mr. Domo. All of the other witnesses have either been killed or have disappeared in the past month. Mr. Albigul was sent here to keep him out of Mr. Domo's grasp," Nick explained.

"So that is why he sent mammals: to go where he cannot," Mr. Big said. "But still, Nicky, how is Judy's disappearance connected?" Mr. Big asked. "They kidnapped her in order to use her as leverage against us. They want to trade Judy for Mr. Albigul," Nick said. "And we have until tomorrow afternoon to deliver Mr. Albigul to them," he added.

"So, you are at a dilemma. Sacrifice the lizard to save the rabbit, or sacrifice the rabbit to save the lizard. And you are completely in the dark with these animals," Mr. Big said. "Yes. We don't know anything about these animals, other than their species and their connection to Mr. Domo," Nick said. "Are these the same animals who partook in that incident on the freeway this week?" Mr. Big asked him. "Yes. One of them, a wallaby, stole someone's car and identity in order to move around under our noses," Nick said.

"And the destruction of Grand Pangolin Arms?" Mr. Big asked. He had known the apartment complex to be the residence of Judy Hopps, and so it was easy for him to put the pieces together with Nick's information. He now only needed confirmation. "That was them as well," Nick replied. "And then they attacked your place of residence in order to get to her," Mr. Big said, remembering his daughter telling him about her conversation with Judy that morning.

"Wait, how did you know about Judy staying at my place?" Nick asked him. "Where else would she go?" Mr. Big replied. "And also, how else would you know that she is missing if she was not there upon your return?" Mr. Big asked him. "The mercenaries called me on her phone and delivered the ultimatum to me," Nick said.

"I see. Now, Nicky, what exactly is it that you are asking of me in regards to this situation?" Mr. Big asked him. "I want to know if you have any information on Mr. Domo and his associates," Nick replied. "I do not know anything about this lizard from Reptaelia at this moment, other than what you have said. However, given that his reach extends far beyond his comfort zone, it is apparent that he could become a threat in the future. What species are these mercenaries?" Mr. Big asked him. "One wallaby, one koala, and two dingoes," Nick replied. "Very well. I will have my sources find what they can, but I cannot promise that it will be quick," Mr. Big said.

"Thank you, Sir," Nick said. "Now, who is this fox? I do not believe that we have met before," Mr. Big said, finally addressing Finnick. "Call me Finnick. I used to work with Nick until he became a cop. I'm short and I have anger issues. Nick would force me to dress up in children's costumes for his cons," Finnick said flatly. Nick could see one of the polar bears trying to hold in a laugh at Finnick's statement.

"Nicky, why would you do that to your friend?" Mr. Big asked him. "The cons worked," Nick said with a shrug. "I see. For one who suffers as you do, that must have been humiliating," Mr. Big said. Finnick raised an eyebrow. "Suffers?" Finnick asked him. "Your body. I have seen Fennec foxes before, and while you are indeed an adult, your stature is unusually small," Mr. big explained. "Fine, I have dwarfism. Satisfied?" Finnick replied irritably.

"I did not seek satisfaction, only an answer to a question," Mr. Big said. "Um, Mr. Big? When your sources do find information, how will I be contacted?" Nick asked him. "You will know when it is time, Nicky. An informant of mine will find you and tell you what you need to know," Mr. Big said cryptically.

"Also, one more thing... Mr. Finnick, were you involved with Nick's schemes when he sold me a rug made from the butt of a skunk?" Mr. Big asked. "I was his scam partner, yes. But I also told him that he was dumber than his own shit for trying to give you the rug," Finnick replied as he turned around to leave. "I see," Mr. Big said. "Um, I thought that the rug incident was water under the bridge now?" Nick said.

"It is. I was merely curious as to what involvement, if any, your friend had in the incident," Mr. Big said. "Raymond, please escort them out," Mr. Big said with a wave. Raymond nodded his head and ushered Nick and Finnick out of the room and back into the hallway. "He was making fun of my size," Finnick muttered angrily. "Fin, be careful what you say while we're still on his estate," Nick warned him as they walked back outside. Raymond shut the door as soon as they exited the building.

"Hey, Nick. I think I know a jackal in Sahara Square who might be able to help us. His name is Kelso, and he knows a lot of people. He also has this huge basement where he stores things that he collects. I've worked with him on a few jobs here and there," Finnick said.

"Is he reliable?" Nick asked him. "Sure. He's helped me with jobs in the past, especially after you joined the fuzz. We can drive over to his place and ask him if he knows anything. Or at least, I can drive over there. He might not be so willing to talk to you, what with you being a cop and all," Finnick said as he opened the door of his van and got in the driver's seat. Nick got inside his car and started the ignition.

"So, am I following you to his place or is this something that you're doing solo?" Nick asked Finnick. "Uh, follow me the whole way," Finnick replied as he pulled his van out of the parking lot and turned around. Nick followed him out of the lot and through the cold streets of Tundra Town, heading for the road that would lead them to the tunnel into Sahara Square.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, Finnick's back. He and Nick haven't really spoken much since that incident in Magnum Fur.


	8. A Raging Storm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The mercenaries close in on Mr. Albigul's location, while Nick and Finnick continue their desperate search for Judy.

Disclaimer: It should be obvious by now, but Zootopia is property of Disney.

* * *

**A Raging Storm**

* * *

Date: Friday, May 27th, 2019 

Finnick and Nick pulled into a parking spot outside of Kelso's Hardware and Supply Shop just as a Jeep pulled out and drove away. Stepping out of their respective vehicles, the two foxes walked up to the front doors of the store and went inside. Nick looked around the store as he and Finnick walked over to the front counter.

There were shelves lined with paw tools, power tools, goggles, gloves, air conditioners, helmets, computer monitors, computer towers, laptops, power supplies, other computer parts, printers, record players, VHS players, Laser-Disc players, DVD players, old boom boxes, CD players, headphones, speaker sets, paper, pens, staplers, fans, shovels, silverware, and bathroom components such as faucets and knobs, as well as some pipes. "This guy has a little bit of everything, doesn't he?" Nick commented. "Most of it's refurbished or old. Still, most of the animals who buy this stuff can only afford the older stuff that he has parts for," Finnick said.

"Let me guess... hyenas, foxes, coyotes, other jackals, and anyone else who society doesn't often give good jobs, right?" Nick asked. "Yeah," Finnick said. "Wait... why is he selling silverware?" Nick asked as he saw a set of spoons, knives, and forks in a container. "They're wares, and they're hard. Works for me," Finnick said with a shrug.

Walking up to the counter, Finnick grabbed a stool and stepped on it to ring the bell. "Just hold on," came a tired voice. Nick watched as a middle-aged Black-Backed jackal walked around an aisle behind the counter and into view. "Ah, Fin. What can I get for you today?" Kelso asked him.

"Answers," Finnick said. "Answers? To what questions? I can't tell you the meaning of life, so don't ask me about that," Kelso said. "Listen, Kel, have you noticed any strange mammals around lately?" Finnick asked him. "Strange? Like what, exactly?" Kelso asked him.

"Like... not the kind normally seen in these parts of Zootopia," Finnick said. "I saw a koala in here shopping a little while ago. Does that count?" Kelso asked him. "Did he have any company?" Finnick asked him. "I don't know who he works for," Kelso said. "I meant, was he accompanied by anyone?" Finnick clarified.

"Not that I can remember," Kelso said. "Okay, Kelso, this is Nick," Finnick said as he introduced Nick to the jackal. "Hello there," Kelso said as he extended a paw, which Nick shook. "Say, you wouldn't happen to be related to that police officer, Nick Wilde, would you?" Kelso asked him with a grin. "As a matter of fact, I am," Nick replied.

"How closely?" Kelso asked him. "So close that I practically am him, now I have some questions for you. Have you seen a group of mammals consisting of a koala, a wallaby, and two dingoes in this area lately?" Nick asked him. "I know that two dingoes came in here earlier to check out this big printer that I've been trying to get rid of," Kelso said.

"How long ago was that?" Nick asked him. "Some time after I opened the shop," Kelso said with a shrug. "When did they leave?" Nick asked him. "I don't remember," Kelso answered him. "You don't remember?" Finnick asked disbelievingly. "No, I had a few other customers come in around that time, so I was busy. Look, why do you want to know about these animals anyway?" Kelso asked him. "They kidnapped my girlfriend," Nick replied.

"Oh," Kelso said with wide eyes. "Now, since you've been caught up, can you please tell us if you've seen a wallaby?" Finnick asked him. "Please, wallabies come in here all the time," Kelso said. "I wouldn't be able to tell you if the one you're looking for was in here today or yesterday," he added.

"I thought you said that only the discriminated mammals come in here," Nick said to Finnick, who shrugged his shoulders. "I said most of the animals who frequent here, not all of them," Finnick clarified. "Okay, look, were these dingoes that you mentioned a male and a female mated couple?" Kelso asked him.

"I'm not sure about that, but it's possible," Nick said. "But... you don't know for sure? Okay, the two who were in here to look at the printer were a mated pair, named Bandit and Barbaros," Kelso said. "Wait, you said they were mated, so why-" "Mated is not the same as married," Kelso said, interrupting Finnick. "Hold on, did you say Bandit?" Nick asked him.

"Yeah. The male's name was Bandit, or at least that's what he asked me to call him. Said that he was a bandit looking for a good time," Kelso said. "Kelso, that's the same dingo who kidnapped Judy," Nick said. "Judy? Oh, your girlfriend, right?" Kelso asked him. "Yes! What can you tell me about him? Age, height, weight-okay, maybe not weight, but height? What clothing was he wearing? What did his voice sound like? Did he have an accent?" Nick asked the jackal.

"Hey, slow down, Mr. Wilde!" Kelso sad as he brought two paws up. "Listen, someone's life is in danger, Kel, and your information could help us save her," Finnick said. "Okay, I'll help you save your vixen, just one question at a time," Kelso said. "Okay. What was Bandit's behavior like?"

* * *

Maulia snickered as she pressed the duct tape against Judy's arm before ripping it off. "Mmh!" Judy cried out against the tape over her mouth. "Aww, never had a waxing before?" Maulia asked maliciously. Tears rolled down Judy's face as Maulia placed the tape on Judy's left leg before repeating the process multiple times. When she was done, Judy's face was wet and covered with tears.

"Oi, let me lick your tears," Maulia said as she moved her muzzle forward to lap up Judy's tears. Judy jerked her head away, forcing Maulia to hold her still with both paws. "Mm, delicious," Maulia said with a grin.

Maulia looked over her shoulder. "Zack, is the train set ready?" Maulia asked him. "Almost! I just have to get the final two tracks in place and then I can plug the cord into the power strip," Bandit replied. "What about the toy truck? Is it ready?" Maulia asked him. "It's been ready," Bandit replied. "What about the Brady Bear DVD collection?" Maulia asked. "Couldn't find it, we'll have to do that tomorrow. Oh wait, tomorrow is the deadline that I gave the police," Bandit said. "Dammit!" Maulia exclaimed. "Oh well," she said with a sigh.

Maulia then picked up the hog-tied rabbit and placed her on one end of the tracks. "Look out for the train! There's a giant rabbit attacking the tracks! Will all of the animals riding on this train die tonight!?" Maulia asked in mock horror as Bandit started up the toy train with the controls. "Take it slow first," Maulia said as she walked over to where Bandit was sitting.

It train set had a very large radius, despite a few curves going in an out. "Steady she goes. Look, Conductor Bandit, a giant rabbit! What ever shall we do?" Maulia asked dramatically. "We shall damn the engines and speed forward! With enough luck we might be able to plow right through it!" Bandit replied in an equally dramatic fashion.

"And if we don't?" Maulia asked as Bandit pushed a yoke forward to increase the toy train's speed. "Then we shall die in each other's arms, my fair bitch," Bandit said. "Yes, together!" Maulia said with a smile as the train rammed into Judy, the cars and engine wrecking and spilling onto the side of the track. Judy 'Mmf'd' in response to being hit by the toy. Bandit turned off the track and smirked with a victorious fist in the air. "Alas, we have died in the crash, for the rabbit mountain in unmovable," Bandit said dramatically.

"Then why did you look victorious?" Maulia asked him. "I am victorious, my dear Maulia, because I am with _you_ ," Bandit said. Maulia made a genuine blush at her mate's statement. "You're so sweet," she said. "I know," Bandit replied with a smirk.

* * *

"So, is the printer still in the store?" Finnick asked Kelso. "I moved it downstairs to the basement. It was an eyesore, and moving it gave me a bit more room up here," Kelso replied.

"But, did they buy it? Are they coming back for it?" Nick asked the jackal. "They said they wanted to look at it, and later on when I went to check on them, they were gone. I don't know when they left or where they went," Kelso said. "I know where they went," Nick said. "Yeah, they went to his apartment and kidnapped his girlfriend," Finnick added.

"Well, I don't know if they're coming back or not," Kelso lied. "Say... you didn't happen to see what they were driving when they stopped by, did ya'?" Finnick asked him. "Uh... I'm not sure. I know I saw a jeep outside earlier, but that could've belonged to a koala that was in here around the same time. I don't really know," Kelso replied.

"All right, but if you see them, call us. Well, call me, or the ZPD. Here's my number," Nick said as he wrote down his phone number and handed it to the jackal. "Um... does this mean you'll be willing to take calls regarding stuff I might want to sell?" Kelso asked him. "No," Nick said sharply before turning around and leaving.

"Right, well, good luck finding your rabbit," Kelso said as the two foxes headed out the door. Nick nodded his head. "Thanks," he said before closing the door behind him.

Nick walked over to his car and got in hitting his head against the wheel. "Dammit!" he screamed in frustration. Finnick sighed and walked over to his van. "Hey, Nick, follow me. I know another person who might be able to help us," Finnick said as he started his engine.

The two foxes pulled out of the lot and drove back onto the main road, with Nick's car following behind Finnick's van. Kelso sighed as he watched the two foxes drive away before he walked over to the hallway in the back of his shop. He came to a stop at the door to his basement and knocked on it.

Knocking a bit louder, he simply growled and opened the door. "Okay, numb nuts, listen up! Whatever you're doing with this bunny, I want it moved somewhere else, got it!?" Kelso yelled at the two dingoes. They were both in the middle of setting up a record player with a vintage polka album laying on the table.

"Sorry, but we're having too much fun. Besides, once Wilbur and Roland call us, we'll get ready to go back to our hotels and then we'll be out of your fur once the weekend is over," Bandit said with a grin. "No. You get that rabbit out of here _now!_ I ain't havin' cops come in here and shutting me down because I let you two bozos use this space to torture one of their own," Kelso said firmly.

"I said you could put your guns here until you were ready to leave. I didn't say you could use this room for torture. Besides, I thought you were here to kill a dirty lizard," Kelso said. "Wilbur and Roland are taking care of that. We have better things to do," Maulia said. "Like what?" Kelso asked her. "Torturing this rabbit," she said simply.

* * *

Lieutenant Elizabeth Matheson sighed as she looked at the clock. It had been almost five hours since Chief Bogo had called and warned her and her team of the impending attack on the safe house, yet nothing had happened so far. Constant communication had been kept between the security team inside the house, and Lawrence Albigul had been kept down in the basement where the second bathroom was located, along with other supplies and two bullet-proof vests on his person.

Checking her watch, Matheson turned on her radio and contacted two of the ZPD officers guarding the house, Chaney and Whittaker. "Chaney, Whittaker, how are things outside?" Matheson asked them. " _Nothing unusual. Saw a few kids walking together from school and someone pulling out of their driveway earlier, but nothing much else has happened. Things are quiet. Over,_ " Whittaker said.

"Ten-Four. Keep your eyes pealed. I'm going to check on Statham and Hornwitz, over," Matheson said. " _Ten-four. Out,_ " Whittaker replied. Matheson switched over to the channel for Statham and Horntwitz. After discovering that the assassins knew about the safe house, Bogo had instructed Matheson and his officers to start using different and secure frequencies for communicating their status, just in case the assassins were listening in on the regular frequency.

* * *

Whittaker sighed as he looked around the neighborhood. The sun was starting to set. "Great, that'll make things difficult to see," he muttered. Chaney fiddled with his speed scanner nervously. "Hey, we aren't here to catch fast cars," Whittaker chided him. "Sorry. I'm just... nervous. I'm not used to doing something like this," Chaney said.

"You've been on the force long enough," Whittaker said. "Yeah, but each time was spaced far apart. It's just... the incident with Officer Hopps isn't making things any easier," Chaney replied as he scanned the neighborhood with his eyes. "Well, pull yourself together," Whittaker said.

Chaney looked out of his window and saw a koala walking up to the car. The koala had a scared expression on his face as he quickened his pace. _What's got him spooked?_ Chaney watched as the koala soon arrived at his window. "Um. E-Excu-use me?" the koala asked nervously.

"Yes?" Whittaker asked him as he looked over Chaney's shoulder. "I-I have a problem," the koala said nervously. "What's the problem?" Chaney asked him in a comforting tone. "See, there are too many bullets in my gun," the koala said. Whittaker and Chaney was confused, not completely registering the koala's words.

"Wha-" Chaney didn't finish his sentence as a bullet passed between his eyes. Whittaker had only a millisecond more before one passed into his head as well. Both officers slumped forward, their heads on the dashboard and wheel, respectively. Wilbur returned his pistol, which had a sound suppressor attached to the barrel, to its holster under his light jacket with a smile. "And now there aren't. Thank you for your help," he said quietly.

* * *

Nick frowned as Finnick's latest contact, a Marine Iguana named Chuck Darwin, revealed that he hadn't seen any of the animals that they were looking for. "I'm really am sorry," Darwin said. "But I hope you have better luck rescuing your... vixen. That's what female foxes are called, right?" he asked. "She's a rabbit," Nick corrected him. "Oh. Sorry, my mistake," Darwin said.

"It's okay," Nick said as he turned around, just before his eyes widened. _Good luck finding your rabbit!_ "Oh my god," he muttered. "Fin, we have to go back to Kelso's place," Nick said urgently. "Why? Did he call you?" Finnick asked him. "No. But he knows where Judy is," Nick said. "How do you figure that?" Finnick asked him.

"He said good luck finding my _rabbit_ , Fin. I never told him Judy's species," Nick said. Finnick's eyes widened as he realized what Nick was saying. "That bastard! He was lyin' to us the whole time! I'm gonna bite his face off!" Finnick yelled as he ran to his van, while Nick got into his car. "Leave something for me to bite, too, Fin!" Nick called as he started up his engine and pulled out of the parking lot, letting Finnick take the lead so that he could follow him back to Kelso's shop.

* * *

Wilbur McKenzie peered inside the window of the house, seeing a female dingo walked into the kitchen while a male kangaroo walked up the stairs. Wilbur looked back at the houses around him and across the street. Even with a basic face mask on his head, he still felt vulnerable. Had Bandit and Maulia joined them, then they could've used the hunting rifle for a long-range attack, allowing the group to kill their target and escape from a distance.

But no, the two brainless sadists wanted to stay behind and torture a bunny because they thought it was more important to have... _fun_ , if Wilbur could even call it that, than actually completing their mission. Perhaps Roland was right to be upset about working with the dingoes after all. In any case, he was now on the threshold of his prey.

 _Heh. Role reversal_ , Wilbur thought with a hint of amusement. Staying to the sides of the window, he checked to see if there were any visible wires or devices attached to the windows or their sills that would alert the animals inside to an intruder. He didn't see anything obvious, and was about to try opening the window when something caught his attention.

He saw a small black wire running down the length of the window before disappearing under the sill. There was no doubt that opening the window from the outside would trigger an alarm and give himself away. _Can't turn back, though. Gotta find another way inside_ , Wilbur thought as he looked up at the roof. _No. Buuuuut... it's the only option left_ , he realized.

Fifteen minutes later, Wilbur was looking inside the window of a bedroom on the second floor, checking for wires. He found none. The window was also unlocked, much to his surprise. _They don't expect anyone to enter on the second floor, do they?_ Wilbur smiled at their stupidity as he slowly eased himself inside the window frame and into the bedroom.

He pulled out his pistol and kept it pointed down as he slowly traversed the carpeted floor of the bedroom, pressing himself against the wall next to the door as he leaned near the frame, listening to for the noises of anyone moving upstairs. There were only the sounds of the animals downstairs, and one toilet being flushed upstairs. Wilbur only moved after the sounds of the sink being ran stopped and the pawsteps went downstairs.

Wilbur carefully opened the door to the bedroom and crept over to the top of the stairs, looking down to see a kangaroo lying on the floor with a tranquilizer gun within paw's reach of him. The kangaroo was watching TV, but he was lying down so that no one could hit him by shooting through the window. _Smart move. Too bad you didn't prep the upstairs windows, though_ , Wilbur thought.

 _Where the hell is Roland?_ Wilbur was about to plot out his route for going down the stairs when he heard glass cracking downstairs in what must've been the kitchen. "Sniper!" he heard someone shout. _Okay. I know where he is_ , Wilbur thought in dismay. He saw the kangaroo in the living room grab his tranq-gun and maneuver himself so that he was behind some furniture.

Wilbur raised his pistol and took aim. The kangaroo didn't even have a chance when Wilbur put a bullet through his skull. "Six left," he whispered to himself, counting his bullets.

* * *

Matheson was crouching down near some cupboards near the door of the kitchen when she heard it. That sound. She leaned around and looked over into the living room, seeing Randy Potts lying on the floor. His tranquilizer gun was in his paws, but he seemed to be sleeping on it. "Potts?" Matheson asked, until a certain scent hit her nose. It was Randy's blood.

Matheson looked around for possible entry points from the windows and door, but there was no sign of anything being damaged by a bullet passing through. This left only one option: the attacker was inside the safe house. _Shit_ , Matheson thought.

"McClaren! Spencer! Potts is down! Repeat, Potts is down!" Matheson called out as she sat back against a cupboard and brought out her pistol. All I've got are tranq's. Dammit! "Where at!?" Spencer yelled from the entrance to the basement. "Inside the house! Someone got inside!" Matheson replied as she looked over at the stairs.

She pulled her self back away from the edge of the cupboard and angled herself so that she could get a better view near the top of the stairs. Just as she was starting to see a furred foot, a small round object was lobbed her way. It hit a chair and bounced before rolling on the floor. "Oh shit," Matheson gasped as she realized what the object was. It was a grenade.

In three seconds, her world went white as the grenade went off, and her ears pounded with pain. It had been a flash-bang, and she was now temporarily blind until the effects could wear off. Using her sense of touch and smell, Elizabeth assumed a crouching position and then lunged forward, bypassing the table and hitting the wall before scrambling for cover as she crawled desperately toward the basement door.

She heard two bullets being fired and felt a sudden and intense pain in her left back leg. "Ah fuck!" she cried out as she limped to the door. She couldn't see a damn thing, but she felt a pair of scaly clawed hands grab her by the neck and pull her down the stairs before closing the door. "Lock it," she heard Spencer order McClaren as he dragged her down the stairs.

"I can't see," she hissed. "You'll be okay. Larry, get that helmet on!" Spencer replied before shouting at the other monitor lizard. "Do I really-" " _ **I said put it on!**_ " Spencer snapped at him.

Lawrence Albigul scrambled to put on the helmet before a loud bang drew the attention of everyone as Dexter McClaren fell back down the stairs. "Ah, dammit! My back," he groaned before he looked up at the smoking hole where the door had been. McClaren's eyes widened as he rolled over to avoid a hail of bullets, some of which hit his tail. "Ack, my tail!" McClaren cried out.

"That's right, cry like a little joey!" laughed a male voice. "Shut it, Hopper," they heard another voice reprimand. "Just lob a few grenades down there and be done with it. Then we can go home," the other voice said. "Fuck that. I wanna see their faces when they die," the first voice said.

"Are you still bad in the eyes?" Spencer asked Matheson. "Yes," she replied, blinking rapidly in an attempt to help her eyes. "Everything's too bright," she hissed. McClaren crawled over to their position and pushed Lawrence over behind a corner and out of sight. McClaren looked over at a window for the basement and narrowed his eyes.

Before he could say anything to anyone, a wallaby landed at the bottom of the stairs, holding a submachine gun in his hands. "Hello and goodbye!" he said with glee as he aimed his weapon at McClaren. He marched forward and pushed his gun into the kangaroo's snout. "Bye-bye," he said.

McClaren's eyes hardened as he grabbed the gun with both paws and pushed it upward before kicking the wallaby back against the wall, hissing in pain. The gun fired as the wallaby fell back, lifted up by McClaren's paws. The bullets streaked forward and hit the basement window, breaking the glass and punching through a thin membrane filled with microscopic wires, causing the alarm system to go off.

"Get the lizard outta here!" McClaren shouted at the others as he tried to stand, only to fall to his side. "Crikey, my back," he muttered. Spencer galloped over to the window and opened it before dashing back over to McClaren's side. "Matheson, can you see yet!?" the goanna called out to the dingo.

"Sort of!" she cried. "Get the lizard and run!" Spencer called as he ran into the laundry room, passing the fallen wallaby and whipping him in the face with his tail. "Shit, my eye!" the wallaby cried as he brought a paw up to his right eye. He looked over into the laundry room just in time to see a basket of clothes get tossed at him, obscuring his view.

Spencer jumped on top of the wallaby and grabbed the SMG, throwing it over to McClaren before grabbing a shirt and covering the wallaby's face with it, keeping him from seeing the dingo grab Lawrence and make for the window. McClaren crawled over to help Spencer keep the wallaby pushed down, ignoring the loud scream of the alarm.

Matheson, who could see much better now, despite her vision still being blurry, grabbed Lawrence and lifted him up to the window, pushing him out. "Don't handle me like a toy!" he cried as he was pushed out onto the grass. "I hit my head," he grumbled as he looked back to see Matheson pulling herself up through the window. "Come on," he whispered.

Matheson groaned as she lifted herself onto the grass and crawled forward before righting herself. "Let's move," she said to him as they both ran around to the other side of the house and towards the street. Lawrence put himself on all fours and galloped beside her, easily keeping pace before eventually outrunning her as he made his way across the road and to the side of the police cruiser.

"Hey, the bad guys are here!" Lawrence snapped at the two officers. "Hey, what's... oh," he said in horror as he saw the blood stains and brain matter splattered against the seats. "Oh fuck," he whispered just as Matheson caught up to him. "Hey, guys quit sleep-oh no. No, no, no, no!" she hissed as she saw that both Chaney and Whittaker were dead.

"Matheson, can you drive one of these?" Lawrence asked her hurriedly. "What?" she asked him in return. "Can you drive one of these things without crashing it!? Come on, we need to get out of here!" Lawrence hissed at her. "We can't leave-" "We have no choice! They have lethal weapons and we don't!" Lawrence cut in. "But we can't just-" BANG! BANG! BANG!

Matheson and Lawrence both turned their heads to look at the safe house, noticing that the alarms could no longer be heard. "Spencer," Matheson whispered. "I'll do it," Lawrence said as he grabbed Whittaker's body and pulled him back from the seat. "This guy's heavy," he muttered before Matheson came over and helped him. Lawrence jumped into the car and opened the other door, pushing Chaney's body out of the seat. He looked at the cruiser's setup, realizing that the keys were not in the ignition. He then leapt down to the ground and began rifling through officer Whittaker's uniform in search of his keys. "Come on, you've gotta have a spare," he muttered before finding a pair and jumping into the driver's seat.

"Math, get in!" Lawrence implored her. She pushed him out of the driver's seat and into the passenger seat. Lawrence pushed Chaney's tail down before closing the door and buckling his seat belt. "Why aren't I driving?" he asked the dingo. "I don't need you to get accused of breaking any foreign laws," Matheson snapped as she closed her door and grabbed the keys from Lawrence, sticking them in the ignition and putting the car into Drive.

* * *

Wilbur looked down at the goanna holding his gut in pain, before turning his head to look at the bloodied kangaroo who Roland was beating to a pulp. "Roland, let him go," Wilbur said gruffly. "Not." Punch. "Just." Punch. "Yet," Roland said before landing another blow to the kangaroo's face. McClaren coughed and squinted his eyes before reaching a paw up to his bloodied mouth. He was missing a few teeth.

"That's for gettin' in my way," Roland said with a rude gesture. "Alright, let's get down to business, shall we?" Wilbur said as he walked over to the goanna curled up on the laundry room floor. "We can make this quick or slow. It's your choice," Wilbur said to the goanna as he aimed his gun at him. "Where did they go?" he asked Spencer.

"Isn't it obvious? They ran away from the domestic violence," Spencer replied as he grinned at Wilbur. "Yes. Thank you for stating the obvious. Now, where did they _go?_ " Wilbur asked forcefully. "I told them to run, but I didn't say where. You'll have to chase them," Spencer said. Wilbur sighed in frustration. "Why does everyone try to make this as difficult as possible?" he asked angrily. "Because... you guys are assholes?" Spencer asked him with a chuckle.

"Okay. You're no help, so we don't need you, and your friend over there is also of no use, so I guess this is good bye," Wilbur said as he backtracked and pointed his gun at McClaren before shooting him in the neck. "Shit," Wilbur muttered, "I missed his head." "Ah, leave 'im be," Roland said with a smile as he pulled a grenade out of a pouch on his vest and slowly turned a dial on it before pulling the pin. He then gently set the grenade down between McClaren and the laundry room.

"Guaranteed to obliterate everything or your money back," Roland quipped before he began walking up the stairs. "Dammit, Rol, I wanted to reload and just shoot them! Why do I have to work with a bunch of fucking sadists!?" Wilbur asked as he followed the wallaby up the stairs and into the kitchen. "Oh, quit your bitchin'!" Roland retorted.

Spencer let go of his gut, revealing the Kevlar vest that he'd been wearing, now that the mercenaries were gone and crawled over to the entrance of the laundry room before looking at McClaren's bloodied body. "S-Spence? C-Close the-the door," McClaren said as he grunted in pain while turning himself over and crawling over to the grenade. There was a small digital timer on it, showing that they had ninety seconds left. McClaren crawled desperately over to the doorway, grabbing the grenade and tossing it over his shoulder, only for it to bounce off the wall and land on his back. He shifted so that the grenade would fall off onto the floor.

"Come on, you can make it," Spencer implored desperately. He crawled over to the wounded kangaroo and grabbed him, glancing over at the timer on the grenade. His eyes widened.

00:45, 00:44, 00:43, 00:42, 00:41, 00:40...

Spencer pulled on the kangaroo, and for his part, McClaren did try to crawl forward, but his strength was leaving him, and he was losing a lot of blood. McClaren looked over at the timer on the grenade and sighed before coughing up blood. Spencer crawled over and grabbed the grenade before lobbing it over to the far side of the basement.

00:29,00:28, 00:27, 00:26, 00:25, 00:24, 00:23, 00:22...

"Spence, please, save your-glaefgh. Bhfleeaasse," McClaren begged as he coughed up more blood. His vision was blurring, and his breathing was getting worse. "No, no, you're going to get in here and we're gonna make it," Spencer said as he helped McClaren drag himself into the laundry room. He helped the kangaroo pull himself inside far enough that he could close the door.

"Okay McClaren, these walls are brick and mortar, real thick, but I don't quite think-McClaren?," Spencer asked as he saw that the kangaroo had closed his eyes. The Kangaroo's paw, however had closed with one digit pointing at the washing machine. "Please," was all that McClaren could say. Spencer nodded his head.

00:09, 00:08, 00:07...

Spencer opened the lid of the washing machine and hefted himself inside of it, curling himself around the cone in the center. "Dammit, dammit, dammit!" Spencer muttered to himself over and over again. He closed his eyes tightly as he grimaced and waited for the inevitable to happen.

00:03, 00:02, 00:01...

* * *

Wilbur and Roland watched the police cruiser drive away at high speed. "What the hell? I thought that I-" **BOOM!** Wilbur and Roland jumped forward as the explosion tore part of the house apart, causing part of the structure to collapse into itself. "Well, that's three down, only two to go," Roland said. "You forgot the four police officers," Wilbur said as he and Roland turned around to look at the damaged building.

Wilbur reached up and took the ear plugs out of his ears before encouraging Roland to do the same. "Come on. These people don't fancy reptiles very much, right? Maybe we can use that," Wilbur said as he and Roland ran over to the nearest house. People were starting to come out of their homes and investigate.

"Holy shit! Did anyone see that!?" a deer exclaimed as she looked at the ruined building across the street from her. Other animals were gasping and shouting amongst themselves as Wilbur and Roland heard someone call the fire department. "Act out of breath and panicky," Wilbur whispered to Roland as they neared a house that two water buffalo had stepped outside of.

"Hide the guns," Wilbur hissed as he put his pistol in its holster under his jacket. Roland hid his SMG under his vest as he began panting. "D-Did any of you see-see that lizard!?" Roland asked in a panicked voice. "Lizard?" the female buffalo asked him. "Yeah! There was a-a lizard, and a dog of some kind! They-They killed those two cops over there!" Roland said on the fly as he spotted the bodies of Wilbur's victims and pointed at them.

"And they blew up that house!" Wilbur exclaimed. The male buffalo gasped in shock, holding a hoof up to his mouth. "Where's the cop car?" the male buffalo asked. "Well if it ain't there, then they stole it!" Roland exclaimed. "Someone needs to report this to the police!" Wilbur shouted.

"Matilda, go get the phone! Hurry!" the male buffalo ordered his wife. "Did you two see them do it?" he asked. "I saw them pushing the bodies out of the car, and then the house just blew up! There's obviously a connection!" Roland replied. "I have the police on the phone!" Matilda called out as she ran over to the door.

* * *

** Zootopia Police Department, Precinct One **

Clawhauser and Francine both frantically jotted down notes as they took statements from the panicked animals that were calling them. "Are you certain that it was a lizard?" Clawhauser asked one caller. "Okay, I understand, but unless you can verify that-wait, you saw him before?" Clawhauser asked. "Yes, Ma'am, I know, and we're sending officers over there to investigate immediately," Francine said to another caller.

"What the hell is going on?" Bogo asked inside his office as he put down his phone. "Where in the blue blazes are the four officers I assigned to protect the safe... house?" Bogo asked as he realized that something was terribly off. If his four officers had witnessed the explosion, then they would've called it in, so why weren't they calling?

His phone rang again and he picked it up. " _Is this Chief Bogo of the ZPD?_ " a panicked voice asked him. "Yes, this is Chief M. Bogo. What's the problem?" Bogo asked. " _There's a police cruiser outside my house, but the two officers inside are-are... they... they're dead! Someone's killed two police officers, and I heard that a lizard and a dog killed two others near the house that just exploded before stealing their car! Is Zootopia under attack or something!?_ "

Bogo sat shock still as he processed what the caller had just told him. "S-Sir, please remain calm. Zootopia is not under attack. We have just received word about the incident and are now beginning our investigation. Please remain calm and stay inside your home until it has been declared safe to go outside by the police. Thank you," Bogo said before hanging up.

"Oh shit. Oh shit. Oh shit!" Bogo swore as he realized what had just happened. The mercenaries had killed four of his officers and had blown up the safe house. A lizard and a dog, presumably Mr. Albigul and Lieutenant Matheson, respectively, had just been accused of killing two of them.

Bogo waited for another call to come in before answering it and hearing the same story. But this time, he asked a poignant question. "Sir, who told you that a dog and a lizard were responsible?" Bogo asked the animal on the other end. " _Some koala and a small kangaroo, why?_ " they caller replied. That was all the confirmation that Bogo needed. The mercenaries had begun spreading misinformation in order to hide their responsibility and sneak away.

It was well known in Zootopia that many mammals did not trust reptiles, and the mercenaries were using that fact to their advantage. It almost reminded Bogo of how Bellwether had used prey's fear of predators to put herself into a position of power, or how Officer Lisker had used other animals' distrust of foxes to his advantage when framing Officer Wilde for a crime that he didn't commit.

Today had just gone from bad to worse. Officer Judy Hopps had been kidnapped, four other ZPD officers had been killed, most of the Reptaelian police officers were likely dead, and now their witness and surviving officer had just been framed for murder and the destruction of a safe house. And the night wasn't even over.


	9. Road Rage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As Lieutenant Matheson and Lawrence Albigul flee from Wilbur and Roland, Nick and Finnick manage to locate Judy. Unfortunately, they still have to deal with two psychotic dingoes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As I've stated for the other chapters, I wrote this while listening to the soundtracks of the Lethal Weapon, Die Hard, and Gremlins films. For this chapter, I especially listened to the music of the Lethal Weapon films, in particular the chase scene tracks, like Mulholland Chase from LW2, We're Leaving (also known as Hollywood Blvd Chase) from LW1 , and Armored Car Chase from LW3. They just have this sense of both fun and intensity mixed together in an awesome package. RIP Michael Kamen.
> 
> I highly recommend reading this chapter while listening to music from Lethal Weapon. It will make the experience so much better.

Disclaimer: I shouldn't have to tell you the obvious, but... Zootopia is owned by Disney.

* * *

**Road Rage**

* * *

Date: Friday, May 27th, 2019

It was already dusk when Nick and Finnick parked their vehicles outside of Kelso's shop. Nick hastily got out of his car, his paws clenched in anger. Finnick leapt out of his van and quietly locked his front door with his key before going up to Nick's side. Nick growled with anger as he and Finnick walked up to the front door and walked inside.

Nick sniffed the air while scanning the store for Kelso. "Where is that lying sack of shit?" Nick asked with a growl. "Easy, Nick. Don't let him realize that you know anything until we have him in a position where he can't escape," Finnick said.

The store was empty, despite still being open. "Huh, normally he'd have at least one or two other customers in here about now," Finnick said with suspicion in his voice. "Maybe he knows we're about to kick his ass," Nick said. "Remember, Nick, questions first, and then ass-kicking," Finnick reminded him as the duo silently scoured the aisles of the store.

* * *

"D'aww! You look so cute!" Maulia cooed as she took pictures of Judy dressed up in a baby outfit, complete with a Binky in her mouth and a rattle in her hand. Judy was now beyond the point of being terrified or humiliated. She now felt annoyance, and grumpiness, and frustration, along with one feeling that, other than a handful of very rare occasions, was very foreign to her. She felt... hatred. Pure, absolute, blinding hatred for the two sadistic fucks that were continually torturing her in the most cruel, unusual, and twisted ways possible.

She had been 'waxed' by having tape applied to her before getting ripped off. She'd been forced onto a scanner and almost crushed by the lid. She been used as target practice for the dingoes when throwing darts. She'd been tied to a toy railroad and then rammed by the toy train three times in a row. She'd had a toy truck rammed into her at least forty times from just as many angles.

She'd been painted over to match the wall, and then sprayed off and given war paint. Some of the war paint still adorned her face. She had then been held upside down while the blood rushed to her head, before the dingoes had decided to play dress up with her. And, most horrifically, earlier that day, she had been forced to listen to an hour of polka music, uninterrupted. After that hour of Polka had finished, Judy had succumbed to her base desires and had allowed the hatred to flow through her. And now... Maulia had just called her cute. As soon as she escaped, she was going to make the bitch suffer.

"Okay, now for the street thug look," Maulia said. "Get her some sweat pants and a T-shirt. We'll put a hoodie over top of it," Maulia explained. "Brilliant!" Bandit complimented her. "Of course it is. I thought of it," Maulia said smugly.

* * *

"Hey, Kelso," Finnick said as they approached the jackal. "Fin? What are you guys doing back here?" Kelso asked. "Oh, we were just wondering if there was something here that we could use," Finnick said. "Yes, well, you aren't allowed behind the counter," Kelso said.

"Is that so? Yeah, and I'm pretty sure that hiding a kidnapping victim isn't allowed either," Nick said with tranquil fury. "What are you talking about?" Kelso asked as they cornered him. "You lied to us earlier," Nick said with a growl.

"About what?" Kelso asked. "Judy. You said good luck finding my rabbit," Nick said. "So?" Kelso asked him. "I never told you Judy's species," Nick said. Kelso's eyes widened as he realized his mistake. "Now, where is she?" Nick asked him firmly. "I don't know," Kelso lied.

"Bullshit, Kelso," Nick growled as he grabbed the jackal by his shirt and slammed him against the wall. "You know where they've taken her! Now tell me where it is before I have you arrested!" Nick snapped at him. "Hey, back off!" Kelso snapped back as he snarled at the fox.

"Kelso, you'd better start thinkin' real carefully before you try lyin' to us again, or we'll make sure that no one ever comes here again," Finnick said with a warning tone. "And where else will they go? We both know that most of the animals who come here aren't welcomed at the nicer stores and can't even afford the nice things. I'm all that they've got, so if you get rid of me, you're gonna be the ones who are stains in people's eyes, not me," Kelso retorted.

"We'll see about that," Nick said with a vicious grin. "Now, where is Judy?" Nick asked him threateningly. Kelso looked into Nick's eyes and saw the rage boiling beneath the surface. This fox was going to seriously hurt him if he didn't start talking. "She's in the basement, along with the two nut-jobs," Kelso admitted quietly.

"I'm sorry, could you admit your guilt a little bit louder?" Nick asked him. "I can't. They might hear us, if they haven't already," Kelso said. "They?" Finnick asked him. "The dingoes. They're complete wackos, and I ain't talkin' about someone covering themselves in jello crazy. I mean sadistic and psychotic," Kelso clarified.

"Bandit and... what was the other one called?" Nick asked him. "Barbaros. They both have some kind of accent, so they're foreign. I know that much," Kelso said. "They're mercenaries from Reptaelia, Kelso, and they'll probably kill you to keep you quiet after they're done here," Nick said.

"R-Reptaelia. I think I remember one of them saying something about that," Kelso said. Nick was about to ask him which one when a door in the back hallway opened and a dingo walked out. "Hey, Kelso? Do you have any bandanas? We wanna dress the rabbit up as a street thug, so we were wonderin'..." Zack Bandit stopped talking as he saw the fox holding Kelso up against the wall. Bandit raised an eyebrow as the fox glanced at him through his peripheral vision.

"I said to call me, not meet me in person. And you didn't bring the lizard with you," Bandit said sourly. "I'm very disappointed," he added. "The Bandit, I'm assuming?" Nick asked the dingo as he turned his head while keeping Kelso pushed against the wall. "The one and only," Bandit replied with a smirk. "Hn, where's Judy?" Nick asked him.

"You don't get to see the rabbit until we get the lizard. That was the deal," Bandit replied firmly. "Well, I'm changing the terms of the deal," Nick said with a smile. "No, only I get to do that. _I'm_ the one who kidnapped the rabbit," Bandit retorted. During this exchange, neither canine had noticed Finnick quietly flanking the dingo by going behind a shelf.

"Now, I will give you one chance to leave here and then come back tomorrow with the lizard. I will give you the rabbit if you do that, but you'll need to leave in the next five minutes. I'll give you enough time to buy something from Kelso here," Bandit said. "I have a better idea. Give me Judy, and I'll make sure that I only break half of the bones in your body," Nick said.

"Hmm... I highly doubt that you'd be capable of doing that, so... I'm calling your bluff," Bandit said as he reached down to his side. "What the? Oh, I left my gun downstairs. I guess I'll just have to beat you up," Bandit said with a smile. Just as he was preparing to pounce, he yelped as something furry latched onto him and tackled him to the ground.

"Gyaah!" Bandit cried as Finnick bit him on the muzzle and clawed at him. "Nick, go find Judy!" Finnick called out as he bit and clawed Bandit's face. "Get off of me!" Bandit cried as he grabbed Finnick and threw him off. "Oof!" Finnick grunted as he met the floor. He quickly rolled over and righted himself before lunging at Bandit, who rolled over and stood up before kicking the Fennec fox away from him.

Finnick yelped as he skidded across the floor and slammed into the wall. "B-Bastard," Finnick growled as he glared at the dingo. Bandit assumed a combat stance. "You wanna play rough? Alright, I'll give you a good time, Darlin'," Bandit taunted him. "Bring it on," Finnick said with an eager grin on his face.

"Oh, puttin' you down will be a piece of piss," Bandit said. "A _what?_ " Finnick asked, confused by the Reptaelian's slang. "It means this'll be easy," Bandit said before charging forward. Finnick used his size to his advantage and lunged between the dingo's legs. He quickly turned around and launched himself into the air, grabbing onto the larger mammal's back.

Meanwhile, in the basement, Nick had successfully located Judy. He had not managed to reach her, however, as Maulia managed to ambush him. Punching him in the jaw, Maulia sent Nick tumbling to the wall. She rushed forward and landed several jabs and punches to his stomach before grabbing him and kneeing him in the crotch. Nick cried out in pain at the attack.

He had fought against many opponents in the past, even tougher police animals, but he had rarely ever encountered an opponent as vicious as Maulia Barbaros. She was unrelenting in her attack, delivering blow after blow to him, not letting up once. Nick fell to the floor with a gasp as she kicked him in the side.

"I thought you cops were supposed to be tough," Maulia spat with contempt. Nick panted as he tried to stand up, pushing himself on all fours. Maulia grinned as she kicked him again, pushing him over onto his back. She then knelt down and started raining blows all over his body and face. "What's wrong, foxy!?" Maulia asked with a laugh.

Meanwhile, Judy, having quietly made her way to a combat knife on the floor, finally managed to free herself. She removed the tape form her mouth with a painful yelp. She glanced over and saw that Maulia hadn't noticed her yet, as she was too busy beating Nick. The sight made Judy burn with rage.

She took several deep breaths before charging forward and leaping into the air, kicking the dingo in the face and knocking her on her side. "Get away from him you bitch!" Judy spat at her. Maulia hissed at Judy before lunging at her. Judy dodged the dingo and grabbed Nick's side, trying to help him up. Maulia managed to steady herself on all fours before righting herself on two legs.

"You little shit," Maulia growled as she glared at the rabbit. "Keep your paws off him," Judy hissed at the larger female. "Hmm, I wonder what a coat made out of fox and rabbit fur would look like?" Maulia said with a glint in her eyes. "I guess I'll have to find out," she said before lunging at Judy and Nick.

Judy flopped onto her back and when Maulia was right over her, she kicked her legs up and sent the canine flying over her and crashing into the wall on the other side of the basement. Maulia fell to the floor with a pained grunt. "Holy... shit," she hissed in pain, clutching her torso. "Come on, Nick," Judy insisted as she helped Nick get off the floor.

The duo climbed up the stairs and entered the hallway, not seeing the dingo watching them with a snarl. Nick and Judy entered the main store and saw Finnick get thrown at a shelf, falling to the floor with a grunt. "H-Had... Had enough yet?" Finnick asked in a raspy and pained voice as he tried to stand up. His eyes widened and he ducked just in time to avoid a screwdriver flying through the air and embedding itself into the shelf.

Finnick quickly crawled before getting up and running over to Nick and Judy. "Where's Kelso?" Nick asked him. "That coward tucked his tail and ran a while ago," Finnick replied with heaving breaths. He was looking a lot worse for wear than Nick had thought. "Come on, we need to get-" "Out of here?" Bandit asked as he leapt in front of the trio.

"Uh... yeah," Finnick said. The trio heard foot steps behind them and glanced back to see Maulia exiting the hallway with a sword in her paws. "Where the FUCK did she get THAT!?" Finnick exclaimed. "I don't think that's important right now," Nick said.

"So, who wants to live forever?" Maulia asked as she ran her tongue up and down her sword before readying it. "Um... ew," Judy said. "It's her sword; she can do what she wants with it," Bandit said. "Zack, Honey, which one do you want?" Maulia asked him. "I haven't finished my fight with the dwarf, but I was winning either way. I think I'd like someone different for this round," Bandit replied.

"Dwarf?" Judy asked. "Me," Finnick said. Judy raised an eyebrow. "I'll explain later," Finnick said to her. "Uh... can we have a minute to ourselves first?" Finnick asked the dingoes. "No," Bandit said. "Okay. Guys... attack the one with the sword!" Finnick shouted as he turned around and leapt at Maulia's feet, biting her ankles. Nick joined him and grabbed the sword, cutting his paws on the edges by accident but still managing to get it out of her hands before throwing it to the ground and punching her in the maw.

Judy leapt up at Bandit and kicked him in the face while his attention was diverted. Bandit stumbled back and smacked into a shelf, holding his nose in pain as various little nick knacks fell onto the floor. Judy heard Maulia cry out in pain and looked back to see her holding her groin area while Nick and Finnick retreated. "That's for Judy," Nick said before grabbing Judy and carrying her with him out of the store.

"Whose car do we take?" Nick asked. "We'll take my van! This thing may not look it, but it can move like a demon when it gets going!" Finnick yelled as he jumped into his driver's seat and started up the engine. Nick and Judy quickly opened the side doors and got in, closing them as Finnick pulled out of the parking lot and backed onto the main road before driving away.

Several minutes later, Nick and Judy leaned against a drawer in Finnick's van, one that was bolted in place with careful welding and screws, and sighed before looking at each other with exhausted expressions. "Hey... you okay?" Nick asked, out of breath with the adrenaline leaving him. "I've... I've been better," Judy replied, equally out of breath.

"Well, better this than dead, right?" Nick asked with a chuckle. "Heh. Yeah, I guess so," Judy replied with a chuckle of her own. Both of them began laughing lightly at their narrow escape from the mercenaries. They both leaned forward and immersed themselves in a kiss to celebrate their reunion. "Uh, guys? I know that this is a tender moment for you, but we aren't safe just yet!" Finnick interrupted, looking back and forth between the side mirror and the rear view mirror that showed him Nick and Judy.

"Huh?" Judy asked as she carefully got up and clamored into the driver's area. "They've taken Nick's car," Finnick said in frustration. "What!? But I have the keys with me!" Nick exclaimed.

"Well, they must've hot-wired the damn thing! Or they found your spare keys inside or something. Did you leave a window down when we went inside?" Finnick asked him. "Of course I... aw, _dammit!_ " Nick exclaimed in anger, both at himself and their current predicament.

"Where are we heading?" Judy asked Finnick. "I don't know; away from the bad guys?" Finnick replied. "The precinct! Take us to the precinct!" Nick insisted. "We'll lure them to the precinct and then they'll be surrounded by police officers. They'll be outnumbered and outgunned!" Nick explained.

"Good plan, but are you sure they won't bug out once they realize where we're going?" Finnick asked him. "I don't think they'll care about anything other than catching us at this point," Nick replied as he looked over Finnick and Judy's shoulders at the side mirrors, seeing that the dingoes were indeed driving his car behind them. "They'd better not crash that thing. I still have a loan to pay off," Nick said.

"Uh, Nick? I think there are more important things to worry about right now," Judy said. "Ah shit, they brought their guns with them!" Finnick announced as he saw one of the dingoes leaning out of the passenger seat while holding an SMG. The dingo in question, Maulia, fired the SMG in short bursts at the van. "Dammit!" Finnick cried as he soon came upon light traffic. He weaved the van as best he could between the other vehicles on the road.

Maulia fired burst after burst at the van, blowing out the back window. Maulia growled and fired her last burst before reloading the gun and slinging it over her shoulder as she climbed out of the seat and pushed herself onto the roof of the car, her sword hanging on her back before she took it in one hand. "She's not doing what I think she's doing, is she!?" Finnick asked incredulously as he saw the dingo in the mirror.

"What? What's she doing?" Judy asked. "She's gonna jump onto the van! She's nuts!" Finnick yelled in shock. "She's gonna _WHAT!?_ " Nick asked. Finnick saw the car move behind his van, and soon there was a loud thump as something landed on the roof of the van. "Oh hell," Finnick muttered.

"What, what just-" Judy gasped as a metal blade punctured the cabin and struck the space next to Finnick. "Holy shit!" Nick and Finnick yelled simultaneously. The sword was retracted before coming down again, this time catching Nick in the side. "Ack!" he cried as he fell over onto Judy. "Nick! Nick!" Judy screamed as the blade ascended back up.

Judy looked up through the slit in the cab and saw Maulia preparing to attack again. "Finnick, hit the brakes!" Judy cried. Finnick grunted as he brought the van to a halt, sending Maulia tumbling off of the vehicle and rolling across the road. She struggled to stand up as several cars passed by her. She looked at her sword, which laid on the road between her and the van.

Finnick started the engine and drove forward. Maulia's eyes widened and she ran forward before leaping onto the hood of the engine and perching herself on the roof of the cab once more. She snarled in anger before bringing her SMG out to fire into the cab. "Shit! Shit! Shit!" Nick screamed as bullets tore through the cab. One hit his foot, and two more hit one of Judy's arms. "Dammit!" Finnick cried as a bullet passed down his side. "I think she hit my ass!" he cried.

Judy lurched as Finnick swerved the van through traffic, trying to throw the dingo off of the vehicle. She looked back at the side doors of Finnick's van and narrowed her eyes. She quickly scrambled over to the doors and opened them, feeling the air rushing past her, blowing through her fur as she braced herself before grabbing the edge of the door and hoisting herself up onto the roof of the van with a semi-flip.

Back in the cabin, Nick jerked back as Maulia fired another burst through the roof. "Dammit, that was my radio! She shot my radio!" Finnick shouted angrily. "Glad to see you have your priorities," Nick quipped under his breath. Another burst was fired, but this time it wasn't into the cabin of the van. "Okay, now what's she shootin' at?" Finnick asked as he passed a semi truck. Nick finally noticed that Judy wasn't in the front with them anymore. He scanned the van, looking for Judy, until he saw the open doors. "Oh shit, Judy!" Nick exclaimed. "Judy? But I thought... what the hell is she thinking!?" Finnick exclaimed.

On the top of the van, Judy ducked as Maulia fired another burst from her SMG. Having now put herself in a perfect position, Judy lunged forward and slammed into the dingo. Maulia dug her claws into the top of Finnick's van in an attempt to stay rooted, but this meant that she was no longer holding her gun, a fact that Judy took advantage of as she stepped back and kicked Maulia in the face.

Maulia grunted before she swiped at Judy with her claws, catching Judy's loose shirt and ripping a hole in it while bringing Judy closer to her. Maulia brought up her other paw and smacked Judy in the face, sending the rabbit tumbling back. As Finnick passed into another lane, Judy saw that they were now on a major freeway, and traffic was now much heavier.

Maulia reached for her SMG and fumbled with a yelp as Finnick drove over a pothole in the road. Judy and Maulia were send sliding over to the side of the van, hanging on as they moved through traffic. Judy looked up ahead and saw that they would be nearing the regional tunnel between Sahara Square and Savannah Central soon.

Maulia still held her SMG in one paw as the other one was desperately gripping the roof of the van. Judy narrowed her eyes as Maulia aimed for her and fired a burst from the gun. Judy shrieked in alarm as the bullets passed her, with one cutting along her cheek. Maulia squeezed the trigger of her gun again, only to hear a click as it was empty.

"Piece of shit!" Maulia swore angrily. Judy heard a horn being honked and looked to her left to see Nick's car, driven by Bandit, passing to the side of the van. "Maulia, let go and get in here!" Bandit called out through the open driver's side window. "I've got a better idea!" Maulia replied as she began to swing her body, causing the van to lean slightly.

When she had enough momentum, Maulia let go and rolled into the van. Judy quickly dove in after her, only to be caught in Maulia's paws with a headbutt. "Can you fly, little bunny?" Maulia asked her with venom in her voice. Judy quickly realized what Maulia was planning to do. "Let go of her!" Nick shouted as he rushed Maulia.

"Okay," Maulia said as she threw Judy out of the van. "No!" Nick cried as he tackled Maulia to the floor of the van. Judy, meanwhile, had managed to catch a paw on the open driver's side window of the car. Sliding over to the other side, she leapt in the other open window to face a surprised Bandit. Bandit heard the sound of Judy landing on the seat and looked over, grabbing his SMG and aiming it at Judy.

The short distance between them, however, meant that Judy was able to push past the gun and grab the dingo's arm, biting it. With a sharp cry, Bandit let go of the gun. He briefly took his other paw off the wheel to hit Judy, dislodging her from his arm. "You little shit!" Bandit snarled as he brought his wounded arm back only to fling it forward, backhanding Judy.

Judy righted herself and launched herself at Bandit again, this time grabbing him and hitting him in the face repeatedly. She managed to reached past him for a few seconds after stunning him, fiddling with something before resuming her assault. "This is for the train! This is for the outfits! And this is for the Polka music, you bastard!" Judy yelled as she landed a blow square on the dingo's nose. Bandit yelped in pain as he tried to shove Judy off of him while grabbing his nose with his other paw.

The car swerved out of control as Judy managed to kick him in the face. Bandit snarled before unbuckling his seat belt to give his arms greater range. He quickly grabbed Judy and pushed her down onto the passenger seat before hitting her in the face. "I'm gonna make you into a hat! And then I'm gonna mount your head on a wall as a trophy!" Bandit said with a manic gleam in his eyes. Judy frowned and furrowed her brows before bringing her legs up to her chest.

"Aww, is the poor bunny afraid?" Bandit asked her with a sneer. "No, but your door is unlocked," Judy noted as she saw the orange part of the little notch near the handle. "What does that have to do with-" BAM! Judy kicked him, and kicked him hard, sending him flying back into the door. She quickly rushed forward and grabbed the wheel, keeping the car going straight before crawling onto Bandit's torso and reaching past him to grab the door handle.

Bandit grabbed her. "If I fall out, you fall out!" he snapped. Judy spit in his face and bit his nose, causing him to let go, giving her the chance to pull on the handle and open the driver-side door. Bandit yelled in surprise as he fell back before catching the frame with his paws. Judy quickly hopped over to the passenger seat and then launched forward, kicking Bandit.

"Oh, shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit!" Bandit cried out as he was pushed out of the car. Judy quickly grabbed the door and the steering wheel. Bandit rolled over on the asphalt, grunting in pain as he tried to stand up, hearing a honk as one car swerved to avoid him. He gasped in shock and relief, just before he saw another vehicle, a large semi-truck, take up his entire field of view.

"Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhck!" Bandit cried as he unsuccessfully tried to duck to avoid the truck. He was too late, however, and the truck ran him over at almost full speed. The driver tried to slow down, but the momentum and inertia of the vehicle traveling at over 70 miles per hour prevented this.

Far up ahead, inside Finnick's van, Maulia punched Nick in the face before grabbing his tail and pulling on it. Nick barked in surprise and alarm. "If only this thing had auto-drive," Finnick muttered as he looked in the rear view mirror to watch Maulia beating up Nick. There were no places to pull over, as they had now entered the regional transition tunnel.

Nick grappled at Maulia's muzzle with his paws while she gave him a black eye. "Now you're putting up a fight!" she exclaimed with a laugh. "Screw you!" Nick grunted before he brought a knee up and kicked her back. Maulia was stunned for a few seconds, giving Nick enough time to right himself and lunge at her, tackling her to the floor of the van.

Maulia managed to overthrow Nick and pin him underneath her. She snarled before scratching his nose with her claws, causing him to cry in pain. Maulia grinned as she heard a car's horn being honked. She looked out of the open doorway to see a blue car drive up to them. At first, Maulia thought that it was Bandit, but then she saw that it was the rabbit driving the car.

 _Where's Zack?_ Maulia frowned as she noticed her mate's absence. "Where's Zack? Where the fuck is ZACK!?" Maulia roared in confusion and anger. Judy smirked as she reached over to the glove compartment and opened it, feeling around for a spare taser that she knew Nick kept in there. Grabbing the taser, Judy took her eyes off the road for only a few seconds as she called Nick's name.

Nick looked over and saw Judy holding the taser. Realizing what her plan was, Nick reached out with both paws as Judy threw the taser. He caught it by the wrist strap attached to it before firmly grasping it in his paw. Maulia was still staring at the car, trying to figure what was going on and what had happened to her mate when Nick tasered her.

Maulia shrieked and fell off of the fox. "Carrots!" Nick yelled. "Nick! You left your phone in the car! Here, catch!" Judy yelled as she tossed Nick's phone to him, keeping the car at pace with Finnick's van. Nick caught the phone with his free hand and dialed the police station.

" _Hello, you've reached the Zootopia Police Department. This is officer Benjamin Clawhauser speaking,_ " Clawhauser said. "Clawhauser, it's Wilde. I found Judy! We're on our way to the precinct right now," Nick said, keeping his eyes focused on Maulia. " _Nick!? Wait, you actually found her!? I'll let the chief know!_ " Clawhauser said.

"Clawhauser, we'll be bringing company with us," Nick said. " _Company?_ " Clawhauser asked him. "We've got one of the mercenaries with us. We don't know where the others are, though," Nick said. " _Nick, you don't know how good it is just to have some news like that,_ " Clawhauser said. "Why?" Nick asked him. "What else has happened tonight?"

* * *

"Go faster!" Lawrence Albigul cried as he looked out the window of the cruiser. The mercenaries' jeep was getting closer to them. "Dammit. We should've been at the station by now," Elizabeth Matheson muttered to herself as she took a hard right at an intersection, jumping in front of another car. "Geez! Are you trying to hit the other cars!?" Lawrence asked her.

"No!" Matheson replied. "Do you have any practice with vehicles in part of the world?" Lawrence asked her, frightened by the dingo's erratic driving. "Look, I'm trying to keep us alive, okay!?" Matheson retorted. "You aren't gonna do a good job if you get us killed!" Lawrence shot back.

"I've kept you alive so far, haven't I!?" Matheson snapped at him. "Gee, I don't know. I got kidnapped by the locals because of you, and now I'm at high risk of getting turned into roadkill because of your driving! I'm not sure if I wouldn't be safer with the mercenaries at this point!" Lawrence replied.

Matheson kept straight, until they came upon another intersection. At this one, she took a left turn, causing several drivers to honk at her in anger. "Um... how many traffic laws have you violated tonight?" Lawrence asked her. "Not enough," Matheson replied sarcastically.

* * *

"Rraagh!" Roland Long-Hopp growled as a large moving van drove past the jeep. "We lost 'em!" Roland exclaimed angrily. "Not yet. Turn on that police radio thing of yours. We might be able to intercept something," Wilbur McKenzie said. " _This is dispatch to all available units, be on the lookout for a ZPD cruiser marked Three-Two-Beta-Five. If you encounter this cruiser, please escort it home to the precinct,_ " Clawhauser's voice crackled on the radio.

"So that's the number. Now we just wait for someone to say that they've found them," Wilbur said as he was finally able to take a left turn. "We lost them," Roland moaned.

"Yes, but we'll find them again. It's only a matter of time," Wilbur said confidently. He was Komo Domo's number one hit mammal for a reason. "Bullshit. We've lost 'em, and we're just as lost in this city as they are," Roland retorted.

"Now just hold on," Wilbur said. "If there's one thing that we can count on them to do, it's flee to safety. So, what is the safest place for them in Zootopia right now?" Wilbur asked the wallaby. "A police station," Roland said. "Exactly. Now, we do still have that GPS, don't we?" Wilbur asked him in response.

"Yeah, we do," Roland said with a grin. "That's right. Now, set it up and find us a path to the nearest police station. Or precinct. Whatever it's called," Wilbur said. "Um, what's the address for the First Precinct?" Roland asked him. "Oh, it's... I don't know," Wilbur said. "Wait, you said that you and the ding dongs scoped out the place this morning, right?" Roland asked him.

"Yeah, but Bandit was the one who found the address, and I forgot to ask him what it was," Wilbur replied. "Well, call him. He's probably still at Kelso's place, right?" Roland asked. "Yeah, but I'm driving. You call him," Wilbur said.

Roland grabbed a satellite phone from the floor of the car. "Is there a reason that we haven't switched to cell phones for these missions yet?" Roland asked. "Probably. Maybe something to do with cell phones being easy to track or something," Wilbur replied. "How?" Roland asked him. "I don't know! I guess that police will try to find a cell number before they try to find a satellite number. Who cares? Just use the damn phone already," Wilbur replied.

Roland called Bandit's satellite phone, only to receive a busy signal. "He's not picking up," Roland said. "Try Maulia's phone," Wilbur said.

* * *

"Hey, do you hear something?" Nick asked Finnick as he kept his eyes on Maulia's unmoving form. "What? I'm trying to-dammit! I missed the turn!" Finnick exclaimed angrily. "Huh?" Nick asked him. "I missed the turn! We'll have to keep going before we can turn around somewhere," Finnick said. Nick frowned at the news.

* * *

"She ain't pickin' up either," Roland muttered. "Great. They're too busy playing with the rabbit to pick up their damn phones," Wilbur muttered. "Wait... Bandit has a cell phone! That's why he didn't pick up earlier!" Roland exclaimed. "Let me call his cell number," Roland said. "Hey, I can leave a voice message. Ahem. Hey, Bandit, pick up your fucking phone, asswipe! Bye!" Roland shouted into the phone's receiver before hanging up.

"Hey, I think I see them!" Wilbur said. "It's them! It's their cruiser! Get the guns, we've found 'em!" Wilbur said. "It's about time!" Roland exclaimed as he prepped his backup grenade launcher. "All right, get me close!" Roland said as he rolled down the window of the jeep. "I'm gonna get you this time, little lizard," Roland said.

* * *

"Okay, I think we can take this ramp and get on the freeway, and that should take us to a point where we can get to the precinct!" Matheson said. "How the hell would you know!? Have you ever driven on this road?" Lawrence asked her. "No! But it's the best chance we have!" she replied.

"Best chance!? The last time I was on the freeway, I almost got turned into a stain on the road," Lawrence retorted. "Oh shit," Matheson muttered with a frown as she looked in her side mirror. "What? What's the-oh, did they find us again!?" Lawrence asked her.

"Yes! But how!? I thought we lost them!" Matheson exclaimed. Lawrence looked at the side mirror on the passenger side door. "Oh hell, he's got another one!" he exclaimed. "Another what?" Matheson asked, just before they felt and heard an explosion behind them. "A grenade launcher! He's got another grenade launcher!" Lawrence cried.

"That wallaby just doesn't give up!" Lawrence said. "He's like a killer robot from the future or something!" he added. Matheson sped forward, passing another car as they got on the freeway. "Good idea, Math! Put more animals in danger!" Lawrence snarked as they weaved between the various vehicles on the freeway.

Matheson saw a large, giraffe-sized van up ahead. "I wonder how tough that thing is?" Matheson asked herself as she drove closer to the large van. "Are you serious!? That's like reckless endangerment or something!" Lawrence cried out. There was an explosion behind the cruiser. "Dammit, we don't have a choice. We'll need to use that guy's van as a shield," Matheson said.

* * *

"What are you doing!?" Wilbur asked Roland. "What does it look like!?" Roland yelled back as he fired another grenade at the police cruiser. "You stupid little... use an SMG and shoot their tires! Shoot their damn tires!" Wilbur shouted at Roland. "Do you think the bullets will actually do anything to those tires!? They're huge!" Roland retorted.

"You won't know unless your try. Shoot enough times and you might pop one of them!" Wilbur said. "Fine," Roland muttered as he brought his grenade launcher back and retrieved an SMG. "Okay, say hello to my little friend!" Roland cried out excitedly. Wilbur frowned at the wallaby's behavior.

* * *

When the first round of bullets hit the side of the police cruiser, Matheson actually yelped in surprise. "Again!? This guy is using the same tactics again!?" Lawrence asked. "Dammit!" Matheson cried out as she pressed on the gas pedal harder and sped up the cruiser.

Another round of bullets hit the cruiser. "Fucking bastards!" Matheson swore. And then they heard the sound of bullets hitting rubber. "Oh shit!" Lawrence cried out. Matheson looked in her side mirror and saw the wallaby shooting at the tires. "Fuck!" she swore again.

Matheson quickly hit the brakes and slowed down so that the jeep passed them. The wallaby was still firing his SMG, and the bullets hit the side of the giraffe-van. The giraffe driving let out a shriek of terror as he realized what was happening. "See! Reckless endangerment!" Lawrence cried.

"Shut up!" Matheson shouted at him. Matheson looked up and saw the wallaby sticking his head out the window and frowning at her, before pulling his gun back and bringing out his grenade launcher. He was smiling now as the jeep slowed down. "Move into their lane and stay behind them," Lawrence said.

"What?" Maulia asked him. "It's our turn," Lawrence growled. "They wanna kill us so bad? Let's see them try when we're ramming twenty tons of metal down their asses!" Lawrence yelled angrily. "Dammit, we are _not_ the bad guys, Albigul!" Matheson exclaimed.

"It's self defense! We can get away with that!" Lawrence said. "No! We are not above the law! I'm still a police officer!" Matheson said. "I'm still a police officer," she told herself firmly. "I'm... I'm still a police officer, and these are bad guys. It's my job to chase them," she said to herself.

"Let's do it," she said as she moved the cruiser into the left lane and sped up, ramming the jeep. "You wanna play dangerously!? Okay! Let's get dangerous!" Matheson yelled angrily as she rammed the back of the jeep again. "Yeah, show them who's boss!" Lawrence exclaimed.

* * *

"Bastards! Police are not supposed to do this!" Wilbur exclaimed as the cruiser rammed their jeep from behind again. "They're going to kill us!" Roland exclaimed. Wilbur started laughing. "What? What's so funny!?" Roland asked him. "In all my years... this has never happened to me! You know what? This-BUMP-is almost kind-BUMP-of fun!" Wilbur exclaimed as the cruiser continued ramming their jeep.

"I like it when they fight back," Wilbur said with a smirk. "It makes things interesting," he added. He sped up the jeep and passed into the center lane before slowing down and keeping pace with the cruiser. He saw the dingo and the lizard look over at him. "Hi, sweetie!" he called out as he rammed the side of the jeep into the cruiser.

The dingo responded by doing the same. "Hey, Miss Cop, wanna go out if you survive this? I only want the lizard!" Wilbur asked. He saw Lawrence bare his teeth. "I want custody!" he laughed again. "He's mine!" The jeep bumped the side of the cruiser again.

"Um... you're starting to sound a lot like Maulia and Bandit," Roland said, disturbed by Wilbur's recent change in behavior. "Shut up and get the grenade launcher ready!" Wilbur said jovially. "Right," Roland said as he laid the weapon over Wilbur's arms. "You'll want to blink when it fires," Roland said.

Wilbur began driving the jeep away from the cruiser, still keeping pace, until the cruiser slowed down as Roland fired a grenade. "Shit!" Roland muttered. The cruiser then sped up and bumped against the side of the jeep again. Roland lost his grip on the grenade launcher and it fell into Wilbur's lap.

"Asshole!" Wilbur snarled. The cruiser then sped up in front of them and stopped. "What the hell are they-oh shit!" Wilbur barely had time to slow down the jeep as they crashed into the back of the police cruiser.

* * *

"Damn, you're vicious!" Lawrence said as he saw the toothy grin that Matheson was flashing as she checked the rear-view mirror. "Okay, now we can get moving," she said. The jeep behind them was almost totaled. The front end had been smashed up and crushed by the inertia of the jeep slamming into the thick rear of the police cruiser.

"You know... I think we may have violated a traffic law or two," Lawrence said with a laugh as he saw the airbag on the driver's side of the jeep. He stopped laughing when he saw the wallaby on the passenger's side slumped against the wind shield, with some blood on his head and the inside of the screen. "Uh... oops," Lawrence said.

"Well, that's one down and three to go," Matheson said. She pressed the orange triangle button and put on the cruiser's flashers before putting the car into park. "I think... we can rest for now," she said with a laugh, which soon turned into a sob. "Oh... Spence," she muttered sadly before she opened the door and got out of the cruiser.

Walking over to the jeep, Matheson opened the driver side door and saw a koala fall out, groaning in pain. "Oh, you fucking bitch," he muttered as he looked up at her. Matheson kneeled down, studied him for a second, and then decked him in the jaw. She then picked him up and landed a blow straight to the abdomen, knocking the wind out of him. "Night night," she whispered as she dragged him over to the cruiser. After searching him for hidden weapons, she opened the back doors before throwing the koala inside. The safety divider had already been set up earlier that morning by Chaney and Whittaker.

Returning to the front seat, Matheson retrieved the radio and called in. "This is Lieutenant Matheson, borrowing Unit Three-Two-Beta-Five. We have apprehended a suspect and are awaiting emergency services on the freeway at mile marker One-Eight. Over."

* * *

Pulling into the parking lot of the First Precinct, Finnick let out a sigh of relief. "Hey, Nicky? Do you think I can get bandaged up in there? You know, without having a squeaky clean record or unwarranted interrogations?" Finnick asked him. "Sure. I'll put in a good word for ya," Nick said as he opened the doors of the van and watched Judy pull his car into a parking space.

As soon as Judy got out of the car, Nick was preparing to meet her, only to hear the sound of Maulia stirring. "Oh, what did I drink?" she asked groggily. "Stay still," Nick said to her firmly. Maulia eyed him with confusion, before anger covered her face.

Standing outside the van, Judy looked at Maulia, only to turn her head when she heard hoof-steps by her side. Looking up, Judy saw Chief Bogo walking toward her. He had a strange look on his face, one that almost resembled relief. "Officer Hopps... welcome back," he said softly. "Thanks, Chief," Judy said tiredly.

Bogo walked over to the open van doors and looked at the dingo. "So, this is one of our uninvited guests, I take it?" Bogo asked. "Fuck off," Maulia spat. "You'll want to change that attitude," Bogo said. "Change this!" Maulia said before she swiped her legs at Nick, knocking him over. She grabbed his taser and threw it at Bogo, who yelled as the electricity hit him.

Maulia leapt out of the van and took off running through the lot, leaping over cars and running onto the street. She pulled a pistol out of her jacket and flagged down a car driven by a badger before throwing him out. "Give me the fucking car!" she snarled before getting in and pushing the badger's wife out of the passenger seat. She then took off at high speed, disappearing into the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: this chapter was originally supposed to be called Knockin' On Heaven's door, and it was supposed to be the final action chapter. While writing it, things didn't pan out as I'd expected, and so I reserve that title for the next chapter, which may or may not be the final chapter of the story. Stay tuned.


	10. Knockin' On Heaven's Door

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Judy has been rescued, and Mr. Albigul is at the ZPD, but Maulia is still on the loose. With her mate dead, and her mission almost certainly a failure, Maulia has almost nothing to lose as she makes one last gambit to get at her prey... down in Bunnyburrow.

Disclaimer: Once again, Zootopia is property of Disney.

* * *

**Knockin' On Heaven's Door**

* * *

Date: Saturday, May 28th, 2019

When Judy woke up, she found a furry red tail curled around her, along with red arms, courtesy of Nick cuddling her. She smiled up at him and rested her head against his chest, feeling the rise and fall with each breath that he took. "Hey," she whispered before looking around. They were inside another overnight room in the station, and they were both on a bench. After Maulia had escaped, neither of them had been permitted to go back to Nick's apartment. Bogo had insisted that they stay inside the station until the dingo could be found.

"Nick, we need to get up," Judy said quietly. Nick hugged her closer to him, as though he wee afraid that she might disappear if he let her go. "Nick... I have to use the bathroom, please!" Judy whined. Nick's ears twitched and he let go. "Back soon," he asked of her. "I will. Promise," she said as he kissed him on the cheek before dropping to the floor and leaving the room.

* * *

Maulia Barbaros let out a defeated sigh as she sat on the bed of her hotel room. She'd already soaked the other bed with her tears after learning of Zack Bandit's death, and she was now emotionally drained. Her mate was dead, both of her quarry had escaped her and humiliated her, and now the police were probably looking for her. Fortunately for her, she and Zack had checked in using fake ID's, so the police wouldn't come knocking just yet.

"That... fucking... rabbit," Maulia hissed venomously. _I've lost my sword, most of my guns, my mate, my prize... everything. I only have my loyalty to Komo now, and he won't care about that if I don't complete the mission._ Maulia sighed. Going back to Reptaelia without completing her assignment was NOT an option. Especially when someone like Komo Domo was waiting for results and proof of a job well done.

"If I go back now... he'll kill me. He'll eat me alive... or feed me to his pet salties," Maulia said, remembering how Komo had once fed a disloyal worker of his to a group of salt water crocodiles he kept as pets in his home. There was no way to get at the lizard and the rabbit now, especially since they were both being kept in the First Precinct under careful watch.

Maulia closed her eyes and looked up at the ceiling for a few minutes, under she heard something vibrating. Getting down on the floor, she reached into her lackadaisically deposited jacket and retrieved a cell phone from a pocket inside. "I forgot I still had this," Maulia said to herself as she looked at the missed message alert on the phone.

She began looking up the rabbit's contact list, seeing that her contacts were someone named Fru Fru, the fox, a cheetah named Clawhauser, and her parents. Maulia looked at the missed message and read it. She was about to toss the phone back at the floor when an idea began to form in her head. A wicked smile slowly began to creep upon her maw as she looked at the phone's contact list once more. "It'll work," she said to herself as she began plotting her revenge.

* * *

Wilbur McKenzie yawned as he looked around the large gray room he was in. It was an interrogation room, which meant that the mirror to his right was a one-way window, allowing the animals on the other side to see him while could only see his reflection. The koala studied his reflection in the mirror, wondering if anyone was already behind it, watching him.

Wilbur's attention was drawn from the mirror as soon as he heard the door opening. He watched as a large female elephant entered the room and sat down in front of him in the chair on the opposite end of the table. Wilbur briefly glanced down at his cuffs before looking back up at the elephant.

She looked down at him with a neutral expression on her face, although her trunk had a slightly angry sway to it. "Okay, given how chaotic last night was, it is unknown if your rights were read to you. Therefore, I will say them now. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, then the lowest-scoring recent graduate from the least reputable law school in the region will be provided for you," she said with a sneer.

"How thoughtful," Wilbur quipped sarcastically. The elephant, whose name tag read Trunkaby, glared at him. "Do you know why you're here?" she asked him. "You tell me," Wilbur responded tersely. "You were caught attempting to murder a police officer and a civilian, not to mention that there's a serious implication that you were involved in the deaths of four other police officers last night. You were also speeding," she said.

Wilbur chuckled at the last charge. "Is something funny?" she asked him. Wilbur shrugged in response. "Now, what is your name?" she asked him. Wilbur remained silent. "The passport we found on you last night states that your name is Barry Callahan, but I don't think that's accurate," Francine stated.

"For starters, the koala named Barry Callahan died seven years ago. His cause of death was listed as drowning, and dental records proved his identity. You aren't Barry Callahan. Who are you, really?" Francine asked him. Wilbur remained silent.

"Look, when your friend was taken by the ambulance-" "He's dead. The crash killed him," Wilbur interrupted her. "Well-" "If you were going to play that game where you say that one partner ratted me out so I should talk too, then forget it. He's dead, and all you have nothing else on me," Wilbur said.

"Your high-speed chase was captured by surveillance cameras," Francine said. "Did they now? And what about the lizard and dingo who stole the police cruiser? That's grand theft auto," Wilbur retorted. "Given the circumstances, their actions can be viewed as a necessary evil for the sake of survival," Francine said.

"Hn," Wilbur muttered. "Now, given the circumstances surrounding the incident, it's quite clear that you were attempting to hamper a police investigation by killing a key witness. It is highly plausible, possible, and likely, that you work for someone who would benefit from Mr. Albigul being silenced," Francine said. "And?" Wilbur asked her. "Who paid you to kill Mr. Albigul and his police detail?" Francine asked him.

"Do you have proof that I am directly responsible for their deaths?" Wilbur asked her. "You were driving that jeep! You were deliberately chasing Officer Matheson and Mr. Albigul with the intent to kill, and we can prove it," Francine said. "Hmm, am I under arrest?" Wilbur asked her. "Of course you are. You were caught at the scene of the crash, with weaponry on your person. And your fur samples are being compared with those found at the scene of the abduction of Officer Judy Hopps," Francine said.

"You might as well lock me up then," Wilbur said. "At least tell us who you're working for," Francine asked him. "I shall neither confirm nor deny the identities of any individuals who may or may not benefit from the murder or attempted murder of Mr. Lawrence Albigul," Wilbur said in a neutral tone. _Getting locked up is probably the best option for me at this point. They already suspect that I'm working for Komo, and all they would need is my word as confirmation. If he finds out that I've talked, then I'm dead, no matter where I go_ , Wilbur thought.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the mirror, Chief Bogo stood alongside Elizabeth Matheson, Judy Hopps, and Nick Wilde as they watched Francine try to probe the koala for more information. "He's not talking," Nick said. He'd seen animals like this before he became a cop.

Animals who worked for other animals with power, and knew that their lives depended on their silence, kept quiet even if they still ended up going to prison. Despite being an assassin, the koala still feared retribution from Mr. Domo if he were to say the wrong thing. Nick figured out that much. "Chief, let me have a shot," Judy implored. "What? Carrots, this guy kidnapped you," Nick said.

"He had help, and besides, he's in cuffs now. When he sees me, he'll know that I've told you guys about everything that I've seen and heard around him and the other mercenaries. He'll give himself up," Judy said. "Okay. I'll let you have a shot, but don't lose your cool. One sign that you're emotionally compromised by what happened, and I'll pulling you out of there," Bogo said firmly. Judy nodded her head. "I understand."

Nick watched as Judy walked out of the viewing room and closed the door. A minute later, the door to the interrogation room opened and Judy walked inside. Francine stayed where she was while Judy grabbed a chair to sit down on next to her. Nick saw the koala's features change for a few seconds before returning to normal. The koala recognized Judy.

Inside the interrogation room, Wilbur took a deep breath to calm his nerves. Judy stared at him, silent and patient. "Um, should I go?" Francine asked the rabbit. "No. Stay," Judy said.

"So... Wilbur, right?" Judy asked. Wilbur raised an eyebrow almost imperceptibly, but Judy caught it. "That's what Maulia and Bandit, the dingoes, called you back in the basement," Judy said. "Even Roland, the wallaby, called you that. So it's either your real name or a very familiar alias for your companions," Judy said.

"Is there a point to this?" Wilbur asked her. "Yes. I know who you are. I know who your companions are. There's no point in you keeping quiet anymore. So come on, talk. We can still try to work something out if you cooperate with us," Judy said. "I find that highly unlikely, given what I've been charged with," Wilbur said.

"Please, Mr. Wilbur, work with us on this. We can at least make sure that Komo Domo doesn't touch you if you help us," Judy said. Wilbur looked at her thoughtfully, before sighing. "Even after everything you've gone through because of me, you actually think that there's hope for me? You are incredibly naive, little rabbit," Wilbur said. "It doesn't matter if I talk or not," Wilbur continued, "I'm never going to walk outside a free man ever again. Whether I stay silent and go to prison, or talk and go to prison, my fate is sealed."

"Then what do you have to lose by talking to us?" Judy asked him. "My life," he replied curtly, looking Judy directly in the eyes as he said this. "I will admit to attempting to kill Mr. Albigul, but for my own personal reasons. For the official record, I mistook Mr. Albigul for someone who wronged me in the past, and I have a very nasty temper that caused me to do some very terrible things," Wilbur said.

"What about the others?" Judy asked him. "I don't know about them. I joined them for the ride, and that's all I can say," Wilbur lied with a smile. "Come on, tell us the truth," Judy implored him. "I already did. Take it or leave it," Wilbur replied. Judy stared at him with a frown before sighing in frustration.

"The other two are dead, and the last one is missing, can't you at least tell us something about her?" Judy asked him. "From the time I spent around her... she's very aggressive, sadistic, driven, merciless, ruthless, cunning, and all around unlikable, she's also but very affectionate towards Bandit, her mate. At least, until he died, which you told me about just a minute ago. How'd it happen?" Wilbur asked her.

"I... I mean, he fell out of a stolen vehicle and was subsequently... run over," Judy said. "You pushed him out," Wilbur said with a smirk. "Kicked him or pushed him, you did it," Wilbur continued. "It looks like we're both in danger then," Wilbur said. Judy raised an eyebrow.

"You're responsible for her mate's death, and she'll come after you once she figures that out," Wilbur said. Judy pushed her chair back and prepared to get up. "You probably think that you can lock her up if you catch her, don't you?" Wilbur asked her. "You can try, but she'll find a way to get after you eventually. You'll be better off just killing her if she comes after you. It probably doesn't sound right to someone like you, but when someone like Maulia puts her mind to something, she'll do whatever it takes to get it done, even if it gets her killed in the process, and if you play nice with her, she will kill you," Wilbur said.

Judy looked away before hopping out of the chair and walking away. "One more thing, Hopps," Wilbur said. Judy paused and looked back at him. "I can't lie to you about your chances of survival, especially against someone like Maulia, but... you have my sympathies," Wilbur finished with a smirk.

* * *

Bonnie Hopps was busy cutting up some vegetables for that nights dinner when her cell phone rang. Looking over at the counter where she'd left it plugged in, she walked over and picked it up, seeing that she had a text message from her daughter. Bonnie tapped on the icon on the screen of the phone and read the message.

"Mom, I am visiting Bunnyburrow for the weekend. Please meet me at the train station by yourself. I have something personal to talk about. See you around one, love Judy," Bonnie read out loud. "Something personal?" she then asked herself.

"Huh? You say somethin'?" Stu Hopps asked as he walked into the kitchen. "Oh, it's Judy. She's coming to visit us today and just sent me a text message asking me to meet her at the station," Bonnie replied. "Just you? Not both of us?" Stu asked her. "Mmhmm. She said she has something personal that she wants to talk about," Bonnie explained.

"You don't think it's about that fox she's partner's with, do ya?" Stu asked her. "Well, he's a male and she's a female. And she is staying with him at his place since her apartment was damaged," Bonnie said, trying not to think too much about the words 'explosion' and 'blowing up' in connection to her daughter. "And he's a fox," Stu said uncomfortably.

"Now, Stu, we've talked about this. Judy isn't a kitten anymore. And... we'd be hypocrites since we've been working with Gideon Grey," Bonnie said. "Alright, alright," Stu said. "Did she say if she'll be arriving by herself or with... Nick? That's her partner's name, right?" Stu asked.

"That's right," Bonnie said. "What time is she arriving at the station?" Stu asked her. "Around one in the afternoon," Bonnie replied. "Well, you've got a couple hours to get ready," Stu said as he looked up at the clock on the wall. "Does the truck have a full tank?" Bonnie asked him.

"You're driving by yourself?" Stu asked her. "Well, Judy does want to meet me alone. Girl talk, remember?" Bonnie reminded him. "Alright. Just be careful," Stu said as he gave his wife a peck on the cheek.

* * *

Maulia Barbaros stepped out of the gas station dressed in a gray jumpsuit. It was one that she'd used on an assignment that Komo Domo had sent her on two years prior, and she had taken it with her on almost every assignment since then. She walked over to the pickup truck that she had stolen last night after ditching the car owned by the badgers, before driving over to Kelso's place to grab as much gear as she could before heading back to her hotel room.

She looked down at the phone in her paws and read the text message that had just been received. "Yeah," Maulia said with a smirk as she got into the truck and buckled her seat belt, "I'll see you soon." She then started the engine and drove away, heading for Bunnyburrow.

* * *

Elizabeth Matheson looked at the injured goanna lying in the hospital bed. "Spence?" she asked cautiously. She watched as his chest rose up and down with each breath. "Spence? Curtis?" she asked again. "Yes?" Curtis Spencer asked tiredly. "You... you made it," Elizabeth said.

"Narrowly," he replied. "At least you did at all. The local police have that koala detained, but he isn't talking," Elizabeth said. "What happened to the cops... guarding the house in the cars?" Curtis asked her. "They... they were killed by the mercs," Elizabeth replied.

"That... explains a lot," he said. "What about the rabbit? Did the police find her yet?" Curtis asked her. "Yes. She escaped and managed to take out one of the bastards," Elizabeth replied with a relived exhale. "Oi, we're the only ones allowed to kill fellow Reptaelians," Curtis joked.

"I'll be sure to let her know that," Elizabeth replied with a chuckle. "You'd better. How did the merc go out?" Curtis asked. "She shoved him out of a car and he got run over," Elizabeth replied. "Really? I kind of expected... I don't know, something a bit less mundane than that, given what all we've gone through," Curtis said.

"What about the wallaby?" Curtis then asked her. "He did in a crash. Broke his neck and smashed his head against the wind screen," Elizabeth said. "Crash?" Curtis asked. "We had a bit of a car chase after escaping the house. I stopped the car and they rear-ended us at full speed, killing the wallaby and injuring the koala," Elizabeth said.

"So, where's the fourth one?" Curtis asked her. "We don't know. The bitch escaped police custody last night and stole a car before ditching it and stealing off to who-knows-where," Elizabeth replied. "That... that doesn't sound good. Do you think she'll try to get back at the rabbit for the other dingo?" Curtis asked. "I don't know yet," Elizabeth said.

* * *

It was 01:20 pm when Clawhauser heard his phone ringing. He looked at the caller ID and saw that it was Judy. That's strange. Judy's here in the station. Maybe she dialed by accident? Clawhauser answered the call. "Hello?" he asked. " _Officer Clawhauser?_ " a female voice asked with a hint of nervousness. It wasn't Judy.

"May I ask who this is?" Clawhauser replied. " _It's me, Bonnie. Judy's mother,_ " the female replied. "Oh! Mrs. Hopps! I'm so sorry. It's just that, well, the caller ID on my phone lists you as calling from Judy's phone, so I didn't realize that it was you," Clawhauser responded.

"Anyway, what can I help you with?" he asked the rabbit on the other end. " _I... I need to speak with Judy,_ " she said with a tone that was clearly uncomfortable. Immediately, Clawhauser knew that something was very, very wrong. "Has something happened at home?" he asked.

" _Um, you could say that. But, please, I need to speak with Judy,_ " Bonnie said urgently. "Okay. I'll go find her. Just give me a minute," Clawhauser said. He buzzed Bogo's office through the intercom. "Hey, Chief? Are Hopps and Wilde in your office right now?" he asked. " **Yes. Why?** " Bogo asked. "Um, Judy's mother is calling and... she needs to speak with her daughter," Clawhauser said.

" **Why didn't she call Hopps on her own phone?** " Bogo asked him. "Chief," Clawhauser said while covering the phone, "I think something's wrong. The caller ID lists Judy's phone as the device calling mine, but her mother is the one speaking. Something is very wrong here," Clawhauser whispered into the intercom. " **Okay. Get your butt into my office,** " Bogo said.

A minute later, Clawhauser opened the door to Bogo's office, panting from the running he had done to get there. "Clawhauser?" Judy asked as she looked up from a map of Zootopia that was spread out on a desk. She, Nick, Matheson, and Bogo had all been trying to determine where Maulia could have been hiding.

"It's... It's for you," Clawhauser said, almost out of breath. "I-I need to exercise more," he whispered to himself as Judy took the phone. "Hello?" Judy asked. " _Judy?_ " Bonnie asked her with a mixture of relief and worry. "Mom? What's going on?" Judy asked. There was a rustling sound in the background before another voice spoke through the phone.

" _Hello, Jude the dude,_ " an accented female voice said. Judy's eyes widened in recognition of the voice. "Maulia," Judy gasped. Everyone else turned their heads to look at Judy. " _Oh, goodie! You remembered my name. That saves me a lot of trouble. Anyway, You have until nine pm tonight to arrive here in Bunnyburrow,_ " Maulia said. "Why should I?" Judy asked.

" _Gee, holding you upside down must've down something to your brain. I have your mother at gunpoint, Judith, and if you don't capitulate, she won't be speaking again for... oh, ever, I suppose?_ " Maulia replied. Judy put the phone on speaker mode. " _Now, you will meet me tonight in Bunnyburrow, by yourself. Wait, scratch that. You may bring the lizard with you. I still have that bit of business to take care of, but bring anyone else, and I mean ANYONE, and your mother will see what her organs look like outside of her body,_ " Maulia warned.

"You... _bitch_ ," Judy hissed. " _Oh good, you've recognized that I'm a canid. How perceptive of you,_ " Maulia retorted. "Why are you doing this?" Judy asked her. " _We are both professionals in our fields, but this matter is personal. You killed Zack. So, I'm either going to kill you or someone you love. There is no way out of this, Judy. if you don't meet me by yourself or with the lizard, then your mother dies. Come alone or with the lizard, and I'll let her go and kill you in her place,_ " Maulia replied.

"Where at?" Judy asked her. " _Huh?_ " Maulia asked in return. "In Bunnyburrow. Where do you want to meet specifically down there?" Judy asked her. " _At the train station itself. You can either come by train or some other means, but you must arrive by nine o'clock. I'll wait until nine fifteen, but arrive any later than that and your mother dies. If I see even one sign of ZPD presence accompanying you or arriving in the interim, your mother dies. And don't even **think** about contacting powers outside of the police. You know what I'm talking, Little Miss Godmother. Contact any of them, and not only will your mother die, but your precious utopia will become a sea of fire. That is the deal. There is no negotiating. Goodbye,_ " Maulia said before hanging up.

Judy looked up from the phone and saw the concerned faces of everyone else in the room. "I... I have no other options. I'll... I'll..." Nick walked over and brought her into a hug to console her.

"It's okay, Carrots. We'll figure something out," Nick said. "We can send a SWAT team down there to-" "No. Maulia said that if she sees even on sign of ZPD presence other than myself, she'll kill my mother. She isn't bluffing," Judy said, remembering the various twisted tortures that Maulia and Zack had put her through yesterday.

"Wait... she didn't say that you couldn't go unarmed," Clawhauser spoke up, surprising everybody. "B-Ben?" Judy asked. "Well, she didn't. She just said arrive unaccompanied by anyone... except for Mr. Albigul. She didn't say that you had to arrive unarmed," he explained. "But... what would I arm myself with? Everything in our arsenal is supposed to incapacitate animals, not kill them," Judy replied.

"Maulia has lethal weaponry with her. Actual bullets and knives," Judy continued. "Even if I were to taser her, she could still get off a shot at me, my mother, or Mr. Albigul in that time. In the time it would take me to get my defense ready, she could easily kill all three of us, even without a gun or a knife. She's a living weapon. She could kill all of us in a heartbeat," Judy said. "Not if someone were to take her out from afar," Nick said.

"And who would do that? Maulia might notice the presence of a sniper team," Bogo said, clearly deep in thought. "Wait... she specifically mentioned ZPD presence," Matheson said, drawing everyone's attention. "Please, she'll still think of it as police other than Judy," Bogo said. "But I'm not ZPD. I could go down there with Officer Hopps and-" "Get sniffed out? I don't think that dingoes are very common in Bunnyburrow. If Maulia notices your scent, my mother's dead," Judy said.

Slowly, the door to the room opened and Lawrence Albigul walked inside. "I can do something," he said. "What?" Nick asked him. "I'll go," he said. "No. We need you alive or else Mr. Domo remains at large. We can't sacrifice you," Matheson said firmly. "Math, you've put my life in just as much danger as the mercenaries this week, so shut up," Lawrence snapped at her. "Now, I'm not saying I'm giving myself up, but I'll make sure that my presence is there," Lawrence said.

"And what if she shoots you on sight?" Judy asked him. "She won't. She'll be focusing her attention on you," Lawrence replied. "You're the one who killed her mate, and civilized dingoes are very attached to their mates. I haven't done anything to her. To her, I'm just a paycheck, but you... well, you're something personal to her," he elaborated.

"But, it's too risky," Judy said. "Look, you can either go alone or take me with you, but you'll have better luck with me by your side. Now, do any foxes live in Bunnyburrow?" Lawrence asked her. "Yeah. There are a few families, why?" Judy replied. "Because we can still have Officer Wilde here come with us. We can take his car, and he can jump out when we're a certain distance away," Lawrence said.

"She'd still smell him," Matheson said. "Yes, but since the car belongs to Officer Wilde, she won't suspect that he'd been traveling with us, since his scent would've been in there when she and Bandit were chasing you in it yesterday, right? I mean, she would've noticed his scent in there before, so she won't think anything's out of place, right?" Lawrence asked.

"I... suppose," Nick said. "That's right, and since there are already foxes living in Bunnyburrow, that means Wilde's scent won't stick out right away. There are already other foxes in that area, so she still won't suspect anything," Lawrence said with a smile. "He has a point," Clawhauser said. "I hate to admit it, but Mr. Albigul is right. Playing dirty isn't appealing, but in this case it's our only option," Bogo said.

"Okay, but Mr. Albigul, you must wear a protective vest and helmet at all times," Matheson said to the monitor. "Fine, but only if I get to drive the car," Lawrence said. "What?" Nick and Judy asked him. "It's my plan, so I want to drive the car. All that I've done so far this week is get kidnapped or have people drive me around. I want to do something under my own power for once. So, I want to drive the car," Lawrence said firmly.

"Fine, you can drive. But don't scratch that car up. I still have loan payments to make on it," Nick warned him. "Don't tempt me," Lawrence replied with a smirk. "Wait, Hopps," Bogo started, "I can't help but wonder... what did Maulia mean when she called you Miss Godmother?" Bogo asked her curiously. Nick and Judy both turned to look at Bogo.

"Um, see, Chief, do you remember my first week here, when I chased Duke Weaselton through Little Rodentia?" Judy asked. "Yes. I remember that. He was carrying those un-bloomed Night Howlers, although we thought they were onions at first," Bogo said. "Um, anyway, I may have, kind of... saved the life of a certain someone's daughter," Judy said.

"Hopps... just tell me who you saved," Bogo said. "I saved the life of Fru Fru Big, the daughter of... Mr. Big," Judy said. "Big? The crime boss?" Bogo asked her. "Y-Yes," Judy said sheepishly. "She was about to be crushed by that giant donut and I stopped it from hitting her, so when Nick and I were investigating the disappearance of Mr. Otterton, we got captured by Mr. Big's henchmen because the vehicle we were looking at belonged to him," Judy explained.

"And?" Bogo asked curtly. "Mr. Big was about to kill us until his daughter saw me and recognized me, telling her father that I saved her life. That's... why I was made the godmother of Fru Fru's child; you know, Mr. Big's granddaughter," Judy explained. "I see," Bogo said through clenched teeth.

"And in the time since then, have you been-" "Chief, he owed her the favor, not the other way around," Nick said. "Be that as it may, I know what these kind of relationships can lead to. You do something for them, they do something for you, and then you start getting chummy. Then you start being asked to look the other way, and then things get deeper," Bogo said.

"But that's not how it is," Judy retorted. "Mr. Big hasn't asked me for any favors since Bellwether's arrest, and I'm only really in contact with his daughter, and she wants nothing to do with his criminal empire," she explained. "It's true," Nick said.

"Hopps, Wilde, when you get back, we are all going to have a very long talk," Bogo said with a firm tone that brokered no argument. "Um, hey, if we don't start planning this thing right now, then we're gonna be screwed when it comes time to meet with the psycho-bitch," Lawrence said. "Right. Let's... let's get on that," Nick said with a sigh.

* * *

Lawrence looked up at the sign on the side of the road. It read 'BUNNYBURROW 12 Miles.' "We're getting close," Lawrence said as he slowed down. "Are you ready?" the lizard asked the fox sitting in the back of the car. "Yeah," Nick said as the car came to a stop on the side of the road. "You have everything?" Lawrence asked the fox. "Yeah. I have everything. Gun, badge, ID, ammunition, map, phone, chewing gum, and a lot of anxiety," Nick said.

"Good. We still have another thirty minutes before we arrive at the station, if we keep going at the speed limit," Lawrence said with a sigh. Nick opened the door and got out, reaching back inside to collect his gear. Judy watched him over her shoulder before rolling down the window. "Hey," she said. Nick turned to look at her. "Be careful," Judy told him.

"I should be saying that to you," Nick replied. He stepped forward and pulled Judy into a deep kiss. "For good luck," he said. "Both of us," he then clarified. Lawrence rolled his eyes at the display. Nick then closed the back door and turned around, running off into farmland and surrounding wilderness of the Burrow County.

"Okay, let's get back on the road. Keep that window down for a little while. We want the fox's scent in here, but we don't want too much of it," Lawrence said as he started the engine and pulled back onto the road. "It shouldn't take more than five minutes to even things out," he said. "Right," Judy said.

It was 8:15 already, meaning that they had forty-five minutes until they were supposed to arrive to meet Maulia. With this in mind, Lawrence kept the speed down so that they wouldn't arrive before Nick was able to get in position. "So... you and Wilde are... close?" Lawrence asked her in an attempt to make conversation.

"Yeah," Judy replied. "Hm. Um, listen... I want to say thanks, for saving my tail the other day," Lawrence said. "I don't remember if I thanked you or not earlier, so I wanted to thank you again to make sure. I'm... [sigh] I'm really sorry that all of this is happening to you guys because of me," Lawrence said somberly.

"It's... I forgive you," Judy said. "Thanks," Lawrence said tiredly. "So, just to be clear, taking Maulia in alive may not be possible," Lawrence said. Judy turned to look at him incredulously.

"That was a tranquilizer gun that Bogo gave us," Judy said. "Yes, but don't expect her to just give up after being hit. If she has anything hidden up her sleeves, or inside whatever she's wearing, then she'll use it against us before it kicks in," Lawrence said. "Mr. Albigul-" "Please, call me Lawrence," Lawrence asked her. "Okay. Lawrence, it's my job as a police officer to try to settle things without killing anyone," Judy said.

"Judy, Maulia is a trained killer. She was there when Komo ate that rabbit, Fagan or Flannigan or something, but she was there with Bandit and she watched the whole bloody affair from start to finish," Lawrence said. "The murder you witnessed?" Judy asked him. "Yes," Lawrence said while nodding his head.

"She and Bandit were both there that evening, along with Domo and two other Komodo Dragons. The koala and wallaby weren't there, but the two dingoes were, and they were content to watch Komo terrify that rabbit before eating him alive," Lawrence said. "He ate him alive," Lawrence reiterated. "Sometimes, I can still hear the screams when I'm asleep, and if I think back hard enough, they're just as clear as they were that night," Lawrence said.

"Then... you have to stay alive, Lawrence. Your testimony... that monster needs to be brought to justice. And if Maulia was there to witness it, maybe we can convince her to testify against Mr. Domo as well, if we take her alive," Judy said. "I wish that were possible, Judy. But, these aren't like the criminals you have here in Zootopia. Maulia is a sadistic... _monster_ , she and her mate both. And you got her mate killed, Judy. She's not going to stop coming after you until either one or both of you have died," Lawrence said.

"Are you sure that she can't be reasoned with?" Judy asked him. "I've seen what Komo does to people, and I've seen what these mercs have done to others, and I know that Maulia must've done something awful to you if you were willing to call her a right bitch like that earlier today. I was right outside the door when I heard you say it, but the venom in your voice... nastier than a viper," Lawrence said.

"She... she and bandit tortured me," Judy said. "You don't look too bruised up... well, all things considered. You've got some cuts here and there, three on your left cheek, and some bruises on your face," Lawrence said. "The cuts on my cheek are from a bully I dealt with in my childhood. He's matured since then and we've made amends," Judy said. "Oh. But uh, you're also missing a few patches of fur here and there," Lawrence said.

"I'll get over it... in time. But if I let my mother die, I'll never forgive myself," Judy said. "I'm-" "Don't. This one isn't on you, Lawrence; it's on me. She told me to bring you along as an afterthought, and like you said, you're just a paycheck to her but I'm a personal matter," Judy said. "Right. That's right," Lawrence said as they passed another mile marker.

The rest of the ride was silent, until the pair arrived at the Bunnyburrow train station. Looking around at the platform near the tracks and in front of the main building, Judy felt around for the taser she had attached to her hip. "Where is everybody?" Lawrence asked as he scanned the empty platform.

"There are a lot of bunnies in Bunnyburrow, but not everyone travels out of it very often. The only time I saw a really large crowd here was when I was heading off to Zootopia for the first time, and my parents and most of my siblings came to see me off. Still, it's not normal for the place to be completely deserted," Judy said. There were usually at least one or two animals milling about, but this evening the station seemed abandoned.

"So, if we were to call all of your siblings out here, would there be enough to take on Maulia with numbers?" Lawrence asked. "I have 275 siblings last time I checked," Judy said. "T-Two hundred and... wow. I always thought that multiplying like rabbits was just a phrase or an exaggeration," Lawrence said in astonishment.

Judy looked at the clock on the car's radio and CD player. "It's eight fifty-eight. We still have two minutes before we need to get out there," Judy said as Lawrence turned off the engine of the vehicle. "Right. Wait a few more minutes before facing the music, eh?" Lawrence asked her. "Yeah," Judy replied.

"If you don't wanna kill her, maybe just put her in a coma instead," Lawrence said with a chuckle after a minute. Judy sighed before looking over at the clock. "It's nine o'clock. Let's go," Judy said as she and Lawrence got out of the car. "Wait, put this helmet on, in case she tries to shoot you somewhere that the vest doesn't cover you," Judy said. "Fine. I just wish it didn't look so stupid," Lawrence muttered as he put on the helmet.

"There, happy now?" Lawrence asked her. "I've never been happier," Judy said sarcastically as she walked forward. She made her way over to the front doors of the station, looking inside the door windows and seeing the inside of the building to be abandoned, despite the lights still being turned on. Grabbing the door handle, Judy pulled it open and stepped inside the lobby.

Carefully looking around, Judy walked quietly over to the first ticket booth. The booth was closed, so Judy went over to the next one, seeing that it was also closed. She went over to the third one, and found herself staring at a rabbit with tape over his mouth and ropes around his body, tying him to a chair on the other side of the glass. His eyes were closed and he seemed to be very calm.

"Mr. Hedgeworth?" Judy asked him. "Don't bother," said a voice from behind her. Judy turned around and saw Maulia standing in front of her. "He was actually asleep when I arrived, and do you know what the first thing he did was after I tied him up? He shrugged and went right back to sleep. How am I supposed to get enjoyment out of this if he isn't afraid?" Maulia asked incredulously.

"Where's my mother?" Judy asked her. "Oh, she's alive. Let me go... fetch her," Maulia said with a grin as she walked backwards. "Don't go anywhere now," Maulia said before she disappeared behind a door marked 'EMPLOYEES ONLY'. Judy looked out of the corner of her eye as Lawrence slowly made his way over to a table with a miniature train set on it, hiding underneath it and behind the chairs.

Maulia soon exited from the door and appeared with Bonnie in her grasp. Bonnie had duct tape over her mouth and around her wrists, with a blindfold over her eyes. There was also some rope around her legs, but it was loose. Judy stepped forward, only to be stopped as Maulia raised a paw towards her. "Ah-ah-ah! First order of business: lose the taser. Gently place it on the floor," Maulia said as she pointed to the taser on Judy's hip.

"You didn't say to come unarmed," Judy said carefully as she removed the taser from its holster and placed it on the ground. Judy saw her mother's ears twitch after hearing her voice. "Okay. I've done what you've asked. Now, let her go," Judy said. "Not yet. I have to make sure that you came alone," Maulia said as she stepped forward and circled Judy, sniffing her.

"Hmm, I smell fox," Maulia said. "I came here in Nick's car," Judy replied. "Nick? Oh, the fox you've been fucking. Right," Maulia said. "Yeah, was that his car that Zack and I drove last night?" Maulia asked. "Yes," Judy said. "Well, that explains it, or else you had a quick shag before coming here," Maulia said in response.

"Now, give me your cuffs," Maulia demanded. "W-What? Why?" Judy asked. "Just give them to me," Maulia said before Judy handed the cuffs over to her. "Good. Now, did you bring the lizard?" Maulia asked her. "Do you mean your boss or Mr. Albigul?" Judy replied sharply.

"Obviously, the white-throat," Maulia said. "The what?" Judy asked her. "White-Throated monitor lizard, known as Varanis Albigularis," Maulia said. "Oh. Yes. He was back in the car when I came in here," Judy said. "Was? You didn't lock the doors to-wait, those locked from the inside; never mind. Anyway, while I was waiting for you, I had a bit of an unexpected visitor drop by," Maulia said.

Judy's heart sank. Did Nick arrive too soon and get captured? "Now, he claims to be a local, and I want to believe him, but I need to make sure that he's telling the truth. I figured you would recognize him," Maulia said as she disappeared back into the employee room. Judy immediately rushed over to Bonnie's side and removed the blindfold and then the duct tape from her mother's mouth.

"Ow!" Bonnie cried as Judy ripped the duct tape off. "I'm sorry," Judy said before hugging her mother. "Judy, you have to get out of here. We need to leave, before she comes-" " **BACK!?** " Maulia shouted as she walked over and threw Judy away from Bonnie. "I said that you had to **WAIT!** " Maulia yelled at her.

"I did everything you said!" Judy shot back. "You haven't died yet. When you're dead, I'll let her cradle your body. Until then, you have to stay away from your mother," Maulia said. "You monster!" Bonnie cried. "Shaddup!" Maulia said before backhanding Bonnie in the mouth.

"Don't touch her!" Judy yelled as she sprang to her feet. "Ah! Stay there," Maulia said as she pulled a pistol out from behind her back and aimed it at Bonnie's head. "Don't move, Judy. I'll be right back, but don't fucking move, or I'll blow your mother's brains out right now," Maulia warned before backpedaling into the room and dragging out a large red fox wearing an apron.

He had rope around his mouth. "I tried putting a muzzle on him, but he could still whistle, and that really annoyed me," Maulia said nonchalantly. "Gideon!" Judy exclaimed. "Mi mmmdy!" Gideon mm'd through the rope. He didn't seem very distressed, at least, until he saw the gun in Maulia's paw. Then his eyes widened and his breathing quickened.

"Now, this little fox went to the station to buy a ticket, but the big bad dingo caught him after he walked in on her. Now, Judy, go get the lizard and bring him into the lobby, or I will shoot one of these two right now," Maulia demanded harshly. "Fine, I'll go get him. Just-Just don't do anything until I get back," Judy said as she slowly walked over to the door.

After Judy opened the door and walked out, Maulia walked over to the lobby entrance, only to start sniffing. "Wait... I know that smell," she said to herself as she walked over to display table and looked under it, just in time to see a tail whip her in the face. Maulia fell back to the floor as Lawrence lunged at her, biting down on the arm attached to the paw holding the gun.

"Get off me you bastard!" Maulia snapped before growling at the lizard and trying to bite him on the neck. Lawrence refused to let go of the arm and sank his teeth into Maulia's fur and flesh, making her cry out in pain as she dropped the gun. "I'll kill you for that!" Maulia hissed at the lizard. Lawrence swung his tail around to whip at Maulia's face with the tip before backing off and running over to the light switches.

He was just about to hit them when Maulia grabbed him from behind and swung him over onto the floor. He looked up to see Maulia run over and kick him in the face before grabbing his head and banging it into the floor. His helmet began to crack under the repeated blows. "Get! Off! Of! Me!" Lawrence hissed before raking his claws over Maulia's face. Maulia stepped back, giving Lawrence enough time to right himself and back away from her. His tail twitched in anticipation as he and Maulia slowly circled each other.

Just then, Judy re-entered the lobby. "Nobody move!" Judy said as he held a tranq-gun in her paws. Lawrence scrambled over to Bonnie and Gideon, using his claws and mouth to rip away at their bindings. "Stop, Maulia. it's over," Judy said. "No. No it isn't," Maulia retorted before bringing a syringe of some kind out of her pockets. "What is that?" Judy asked her.

"Shoot me and you'll find out," Maulia said with a grin. "What are you waiting for?" Maulia asked her. Judy looked over Maulia's shoulder and saw Lawrence and Gideon freeing Bonnie together. "Guys, get her out of here," Judy said as they made their way over to the lobby doors, staying out of Maulia's reach. "What about you?" Gideon asked her. "I'll be okay. Just call out to Nick and have him get over here," Judy replied.

"So, you didn't obey my orders after all? That's playing dirty," Maulia said. "No, it's called thinking like the enemy," Judy replied. "Hn, so you aren't as stupid as I thought," Maulia said.

"Now, I am going to place you under-" Judy stopped talking as Maulia grinned and pointed to the paw cuffs on the floor behind her. "Forgetting something? Come on, Judy, put down the gun," Maulia said. "Stay back, Maulia," Judy warned. Maulia sighed and relaxed her posture, only to quickly bring a leg up and kick the tranq-gun out of Judy's paws. "Now, we do things my way," Maulia snarled as she kicked Judy back against the door.

Judy rolled over as Maulia brought out a combat knife and slashed at the spot on the floor where she had just been. Judy righted herself and dove between Maulia's legs before spinning around and kicking her in the ass, sending Maulia tumbling forward. Maulia fell over and quickly righted herself. Both women took a fighting stance as they began circling each other.

"So tell me, Judy," Maulia began, "Have you ever killed someone with your bare paws?" Judy glared at her. "No? Of course not. You had to push Zack out of a car and let another vehicle do the job for you!" Maulia hissed as she slashed at Judy, missing by mere centimeters. Judy grabbed onto Maulia's arm and flung herself forward, kicking the dingo in the face. Maulia stumbled backwards into the door, pushing it open before grabbing Judy with her other paw and turning herself as she fell, landing on top of Judy.

Maulia bent her head down and bit into Judy's right ear before standing up and swinging the rabbit around in the air. Judy screamed in pain before Maulia let go and she was sent sailing through the air, landing on the hood of a parked car. "Judy!" Bonnie cried.

"What are you still doing here?" Maulia asked the rabbit as she turned around and took a step towards her. She brandished her combat knife and grinned as she walked toward the doe. "Well, it doesn't matter. Judy broke the agreement. That means I get to show you your intestines," Maulia said wickedly. Maulia just noticed a flashing light in the distance before she felt something embed itself in her side.

Maulia reached down and plucked out a tranquilizer dart. "Oh, you stupid bastards," Maulia said before she reached into her jumpsuit and retrieved her syringe. Carefully removing the cap, she plunged the needle into her side and pumped the fluid into her body. "Ah, sweet adrenaline," Maulia said wistfully. "What a rush," she added with a smile.

Her eyes began to dilate as the two chemical cocktails began mixing together in her body, causing her to swish her head to the side a few times. "Whoa," Maulia said to herself before taking deep breaths. "Okay. Maybe I took too much," she said to herself. "Now, time to kill da wabbit! Kill da wabbit!" Maulia sang.

"Touch her, and I'll get in touch with my natural instincts," Gideon said as he stepped in front of Bonnie, shielding her. "Oh please. You're a fox. You're natural instincts are to survive by running away from bigger animals," Maulia said condescendingly. "Now get out of my way!" she snapped as she grabbed Gideon by the throat with one paw, surprise clearly written on his face as she threw him to the side.

Gideon grabbed his throat and coughed after the rough landing. "Don't get in my way, Red," Maulia spat. "Don't... don't make me mad. Just because you're a female don't mean I won't-" "Oh, spare me the fucking chivalry!" Maulia snapped as she marched over and kicked Gideon in the side. She reached down and grabbed his shirt, lifting him by the collar, before raising her knife and cutting a thin line across Gideon's cheek.

"You feel that? See this blade?" Maulia asked him with a twisted grin on her face. "I've cut the necks of dozens of foxes like you with it, all of them fifty times tougher than you could ever hope to be, and not just foxes. I've even cut me a Komodo Dragon, a dozen rabbits, a shark, a few other dingoes, a rhino, and a wild crocodile with this here knife," Maulia said with a manic gleam in her eyes. "You'll be just another notch on the belt for me, and killin' you will be a piece of of piss, not mention fun as hell," Maulia said jovially.

"You-You're insane," Gideon whispered. "I know. It's loads of fun," Maulia said to him with a smile. She then raised the knife and prepared to plunge it into Gideon's throat when a gray blur slammed into her, knocking her off her feet. Maulia looked over and saw Judy scrambling around on all fours before lunging at her again.

Maulia raised her knife and cut Judy in the side. Judy skidded across the platform with a yelp, clutching her side before standing up and facing Maulia, panting for breath as she stared down her opponent. "You little shit. I'm gonna cut out your intestines and strangle you with 'em!" Maulia snarled. "You'll have to catch me first," Judy replied with a wry smile.

"Oh, I will," Maulia said before lunging at the rabbit. Judy leapt to the side, only for Maulia to spin around and kick her in the side before pouncing on her. Maulia raised her knife and brought it down, only for Judy to grab her arm with both paws and hold it back. Maulia grunted as she tried to force the knife down further. She then moved her other arm up and grabbed Judy by the throat, tightening her grip on the rabbit.

Judy gasped for air and almost loosened her hold on Maulia's arm. Maulia's smile widened as she saw the rabbit desperately try to keep her grip on her arm while losing consciousness as her grip tightened. "Maybe I should just rip your whole throat out while I'm at it," Maulia said.

"Rip this out!" Maulia turned her head just in time to see Nick slam the butt of the tranquilizer rifle into her, knocking her off of Judy on onto her back. "That-that made no sense!" Maulia spat at him. "Like I care," Nick retorted. "Fair enough," Maulia quipped as she stood up and faced the pair. "So, who wants to die first?" Maulia asked them.

"Is there any way at all to make you come back with us and turn yourself in?" Nick asked the dingo. Maulia's eyes widened and she laughed. "Oh, fuck no! How stupid do you think I am!?" she asked with a laugh. "The only way that I'm going anywhere with you is in a body bag. Sure, I can probably kill Komo by myself if I feel like it, but why would I?" Maulia asked, the mix of adrenaline and tranquilizer clouding her judgement.

"So there's no chance of you cooperating with us?" Nick asked her. "You really haven't heard a single word I've said, have you?" Maulia asked him in response. "I guess we don't really have much of a choice then, do we?" Nick asked as he glanced at Judy, who had managed to stand up. "Well then... to the end," Maulia said with a smile as she held up her knife and took a combat stance.

Without warning, she sped forward, kicking at Judy before slashing at Nick, who brought up his rifle to block the blow. Judy rolled over and then grabbed Maulia's leg. Maulia quickly lifted her leg and spun around to kick Nick, sending him and Judy falling over. Maulia lunged forward and plunged the knife down, missing Nick's head by an inch as he turned just in time to avoid the blow.

Maulia was pushed back when Judy bent her knees and kicked forward. Maulia dropped to one knee before standing back and and running forward, rolling over and cutting Judy's left ear before turning and getting behind Nick, grabbing him by the throat and plunging the knife into his abdomen. "Gyaah!" Nick cried in pain.

"Oh relax. It'll be over soon. I just need to hit you in a few more places," Maulia said as she began to remove the knife, only for Nick to grab her by the wrist and keep the knife in place. "Clever boy, aren't you?" Maulia commented. "Not everyone is so smart," she said. "Fuck.. you," Nick muttered.

"Oh, piss off" Maulia spat before twisting the knife. "Nick!" Judy yelled. "You can keep the knife for a little while," Maulia said before pushing Nick away. He tumbled to the platform floor with a grunt of pain. With lightning speed, Maulia lunged forward and grabbed Judy, pinning her to the ground as she began raining blow after blow down upon the rabbit's face.

"Come on, I've got all night!" Maulia laughed as Judy's face became bloodier with each hit. "Get off of my baby!" Bonnie cried as she ran forward and jumped onto Maulia's back. Maulia reached back and easily grabbed Bonnie, pulling her over her shoulder and throwing her to the ground next to her daughter. Maulia let go of Bonnie only to rake her claws against the older doe's face, scarring her.

"Don't worry, you'll get your chance after I'm done with your daughter," Maulia said, grinning. She heard the sound of a door opening, followed by a nervous cry of "Let them go!" Maulia turned her head and looked at the lizard, Lawrence Albigul, holding her gun. Maulia narrowed her eyes and frowned. "Really? Do you even know how to use that thing?" Maulia asked him.

"Yes. Yes I do," Lawrence said with a gulp. "And I suppose you're going to shoot me? Please, you can't do it. You're a coward, and you're weak and pathetic. Go ahead and shoot. You'll probably miss anyway," Maulia said as she let go of Bonnie and Judy to stand up. She turned around and faced Lawrence, slowly walking towards him. "S-Stay back!" Lawrence said.

"M-Maulia Barbaros, this is... well, kind of a citizen's arrest, if I were a citizen of this country, which I'm not... yet, but you're still under arrest! For being an accessory to the murder of Mr. Flannigan, and the at-attempted murder of police officers Judy Hopps and-and Nicholas Wilde," Lawrence said nervously, anxiety coursing through him.

"Is that so? Well then, you'd better take me in," Maulia said mockingly with a haughty smile on her face. "Just put down the gun and I'll make your death quick," Maulia said as she came closer. "Is-Is that a-a threat on my life?" Lawrence asked her. "Well, duh! I'm going to kill you," Maulia replied. "In that case, I have the perfect legal defense: self-defense," Lawrence said.

"Say what now?" Maulia asked him. "I-I will shoot you if you come any closer," Lawrence said as Maulia soon was only a few feet away. "Well then, you'd better shoot me, or else I'll kill you," she said as she smiled and showed him her fangs. She then took a step back before lunging forward. Lawrence closed his eyes and squeezed the trigger.

Maulia stopped and stepped back, looking down at her stomach with shock. "You-You actually shot me. You're fucking _dead!_ " Maulia roared as she lunged forward again. **BANG! BANG! BANG!** Lawrence fired three more times, knocking Maulia down, before lowering the gun, shuddering in revulsion, fear, and relief. Maulia gasped in shock and looked up at the night sky as her blood began to pool around her body on the platform.

Lawrence fell to his knees and looked at Maulia's dying body, taking deep breaths to calm himself. "I-I killed her," he whispered to himself in near-disbelief. "I actually... holy shit," he muttered. He closed his eyes and opened them to look at Maulia again. "I'm gonna have one hell of a therapy bill after all of this."

* * *

**187 Beach View Lane, Outskirts of Sygnalia, Reptaelia**

Date: Monday, June 2nd, 2019

Komo Domo reclined back in his chair and frowned as he read the news report on his personal computer. "So, only Wilbur remains," he said to himself. "Arjun," Komo called out. One of his personal assistants, another Komodo Dragon, entered the room, wearing a suit. "Yes, Mr. Domo?" he asked. "Our kill team has failed. Bandit and Long-Hopp are dead. Maulia is apparently in critical condition, although I suspect that she has already died and it has simply not been reported yet, and Mr. McKenzie is on his way to prison," Komo said.

"Has McKenzie tried to bite our hands, sir?" Arjun asked him. "I do not know. A statement released by the police says that the koala identified as Wilbur McKenzie... admitted to attempting to kill a monitor lizard for personal reasons due to a case of mistaken identity. He apparently mistook a Mr. Larry, an alias I'm assuming, for another monitor who had wronged him in the past. He allowed his nasty temper to get the better of him, and only cooperated with the other three killers out of a shared interest. He knows, oh this is good, he knows nothing about their own motivations, other than the dingoes being quote 'creepy' and 'possibly insane', end quote," Komo said with a laugh.

"So... he's proving his loyalty, then?" Arjun asked him. "Loyalty... or fear. Maybe both? It doesn't matter. Wilbur has accepted his fate to live the rest of his natural life in prison, without parole due to his admitted killing of two police officers," Komo said. "So... do we leave him alone?" Arjun asked Komo. "For now. Wilbur has always been one of my most loyal subordinates, and one of my best. He will prove his loyalty by staying quiet. He knows what will happen otherwise," Komo said with a sigh.

"So, why am I here?" Arjun asked him. "Because... Mr. Albigul is still alive, and I may need someone to continue my operations in my absence in the event that my lawyers cannot get the courts to see things my way. However, I do believe that even if I am put away, it will not be for very long. I have many friends in high places, and not just here in Reptaelia," Komo said.

"I see. You wish for me to visit them?" Arjun asked him. "Yes. Nothing concrete yet, but I do believe that it is time to begin setting up our expansion. Nothing major yet, just small dealings outside of the country. Eventually, we will make our way oversees. But... one step at a time. One step... at a time," Komo said with a smirk.

* * *

"So..." Judy said carefully as she looked at Bogo's face. Nick and Judy were both covered in bandages. Nick was also using a crutch, while Judy had two smaller ones with her. "Officially, you two are on a well-deserved vacation for the next week or so. Unofficially, you are also on a form or probation as we investigate your connections to Mr. Big," Bogo said. "Look, I already told you about the skunk butt rug," Nick said. "Yes, but it isn't you who I'm worried about, Wilde. I have no doubt that Mr. Big would rather shove you into oncoming traffic than make deals with you. Officer Hopps, however, is on much friendlier terms with the family. This, unfortunately, makes you a liability until we can prove otherwise," Bogo said to Judy.

"Do you understand why I am doing this?" Bogo asked her. "Yes sir. To perform a background check and ensure that my records are clean and that none of my cases so far have used any ties to the mafia," Judy replied somberly. "Yes. Hopps, I know that your heart is in the right place, but legal matters can be very delicate, and we have to keep our hands clean as much as we can, especially when it comes to stuff like this," Bogo said in a firm yet gentle tone.

"If, hypothetically of course, it were discovered that a case you solved was done using connections to the mob, then many of your other cases could be called into question, putting your career at risk, and destroying your credibility. It can also call the department itself into question, should those kind of connections be discovered," Bogo explained. "Hopps, I know it may sound harsh, but while Mr. Big's daughter may seem friendly, I need you to remain out of contact with her for the duration of your... vacation. You may call her today and inform her that you and Wilde are on an extended vacation to some... I don't know, secret spa or something, and will have your communications turned off most of the time," Bogo said.

"After that... stay out of contact. I know it may seem overboard, but we have to be certain that you've followed procedure and haven't broken the law or used underhanded methods of gathering information," Bogo said. "I... I understand, Chief," Judy said. "Good. Now, both of you, get out of my office and start your probation-I mean vacation," Bogo said.

"Uh, Chief, out of curiosity, where is Mr. Albigul being kept now?" Nick asked. "He's staying in the custody of the Federal Marshals now. Officers Spencer and Matheson are still providing protection to Mr. Albigul until further notice. As for the current location of Mr. Albigul, even I am unaware of that," Bogo replied.

"Well, that's... that's good. Say, what does his therapy bill look like? Is it bigger than mine after I saw you in the showers?" Nick joked. "Wilde. Don't push it," Bogo said. "Right. Well... gotta go," Nick said as he and Judy left the room.

"So... where to?" Judy asked Nick. "Well, I guess we could go to the beach or just stay at my apartment," Nick suggested. "How about... our apartment?" Judy asked him. "Wow, that was quick. Sure we're not rushing things?" Nick asked her. "Nick, trust me. We've known each other long enough, and we've been through enough together. Besides, it's so much nicer than my old apartment, and it has a bathroom," Judy replied.

"That's true," Nick said with a smirk. "So... we'll just stay in the apartment," Nick said. "What? I thought you wanted to go to the beach?" Judy asked him as they stepped into an elevator. "Well, it'll be like going to the beach," Nick replied. "Yeah, and how does that work?" Judy asked him. "Hmm, we'll be wearing very little clothing, we'll be having fun, and we'll both get wet. At least, _you'll_ get wet," Nick said with a smirk as the elevator stopped and opened on the first floor.

The duo walked out and passed Clawhauser, who was chatting away with Francine. The duo waved at the cheetah, who waved back, and walked out the front doors. "So, where to first?" Judy asked Nick. "Well, I was thinking first we'd go to bed. I'm still tired from all the running around we did last week," Nick replied with a wink. "Can I come with you?" Judy asked him.

"Do you snore?" Nick asked her. "Non-stop," she replied with a smile. "Then let's go," Nick said as they got into his car and drove away from the precinct. "Say... what happened to Finnick? I didn't see him at all on Saturday," Judy asked Nick. "Oh, he went back to his van after getting patched up. Don't worry, we'll see him again someday," Nick said. "You know, we could also go to Bunnyburrow, check on your family, and relax. Maybe introduce me to your parents properly," Nick suggested. "Let's go home first, and then start planning," Judy said. "Sounds good to me," Nick said with a smile as they drove home.

The End... For Now

Ending Theme: If You Asked Me To, by Patti LaBelle

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the end of Reckless Endangerment, but not the end of the whole story. I have two other connected stories that I am now planning. The first one is a sequel or continuation of Reckless Endangerment, called The Scales Of Fear. It will revolve around the expansion of Komo Domo's empire into Zootopia and the resulting conflict between his and Mr. Big's empires. The second one will be a further continuation, called Furry Fury.
> 
> And, for those interested, the characters of Chaney and Whittaker were named after actors Forrest Whittaker and Lon Chaney Jr. You can guess why the wolf was named after Lon Chaney Jr.


End file.
